Future Dragon: Rose Long Season One
by Fudogg
Summary: Sequel to my season three and American Dragon: Haley Long. Rose is a dragon, and now must deal with the crippling illness the dragon chi inside of her causes, as well as other difficult obstacles currently in her life. Season One of ten.
1. Chapter 1

Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season One)

**Disclaimer: I don't own American Dragon. I don't own Rose. I don't own Jake. I don't own Rose's parents. You got it? Good.**

Chapter/Episode 1: The Calling

Inside the halls of New York's local college, thirty-year old Rose Long stood in the halls, dunking a mop into a bucket of soapy water. Wearing the standard dark blue janitor's uniform, Rose pulled the mop out and put it to the floor, slowly and feebly walking as she started to use it to clean the floor.

Despite being only thirty years of age, Rose looked like she was in her fifties. She had wrinkles on her face and under her eyes. Her hair, which was tied in a pony-tail, had many gray streaks. Overall, she just looked very tired.

As Rose slowly moved down the hall, she was completely unaware that behind her, two figures had stepped up to greet her. "Hi, Rose..." A female voice said.

With a sigh, Rose slowly turned around to see two people she recognized. The first person that she recognized was her sister-in-law's dragon student, Carter Cromwell, a freshman; he was only sixteen years old, but he had graduated from high school two years early. He had grown a little in height, and also a little in muscle. The second person that Rose recognized was a girl, about twenty-two years old. She was fairly short for her age and had short black hair that touched the back of her neck. She wore a Bondi Blue -colored zip-up sweater and a pair of torn jeans that were a little tight for her.

"Hey, Savannah..." Rose greeted. "...Hey, Carter..."

"You're looking worse and worse every day..." Savannah told her sadly.

"I'm sick..." Rose replied.

"Maybe if you cheered up, you'd feel better..." Savannah suggested.

"We've been through this every day, Savannah..." Rose nearly snapped. "...I'm as happy as I'll ever be..."

"I know..." Savannah replied. "...But I can't help but bring it up every day that I see you. You're a dragon..."

"Unfortunately..." Rose said.

"...Aren't dragons supposed to be strong?" Savannah asked. Then, smiling, she put her hands on her hips. "You still want Carter and me to walk you home?"

LINE BREAK

Carter and Savannah were both walking slow as they walked alongside Rose, allowing the slow walking janitor to keep up with them. "We're almost there..." Savannah told her as they continued on, passing by many large buildings that were passed off as houses.

"I know..." Rose replied.

For the rest of the walk, all three of them remained silent. Finally, they arrived at the house that Rose was staying at. "Thanks for walking me home guys..." Rose said in her now regular down tone as she turned her head in both directions to look at both Savannah and Carter.

"It's the least we could do..." Savannah smiled as Rose slowly started to walk toward the stairs. Savannah watched, her smile fading as she watched Rose turn and slowly start to walk up the stairs. Once Rose reached the top of the stairs, she slowly opened the door and stepped inside.

Taking a deep breath, Savannah waited until the door closed behind Rose before she turned around to face Carter. "Do you know what's been going on with her?" She asked. "Her bad mood has been getting worse and worse for the past couple of days..."

"Yeah..." Carter finally spoke. "...It's that time of year again. In a couple of days, it's going to happen again..."

LINE BREAK

Rose slowly walked from the first hall in the house to the family room. Rose saw her twin sister , Daisy, sitting against the couch, her legs pulled up close to her chest as she had pad of paper on her legs; Daisy was currently doodling.

Hearing the sound of the floorboards creaking, Daisy looked up from her paper pad and turned her head to the side, looking at her twin sister. "Oh..." She said. "...You're home..."

"Yeah..." Rose replied as she slowly started to walk further into the room. "...Mind moving so I can lay down?"

"Sure..." Daisy replied, sympathy quickly filling her voice. Daisy took the pad of paper off of her legs and held it in her hands as she got to her feet. Despite having spent months in a magical prison as a teenager, Daisy still looked several years younger than her twin sister, perhaps even a decade younger.

"Thanks..." Rose replied, slowly starting to walk over to the couch. As soon as she reached the couch, she sat down on her knees before she lied down on her belly, slowly rolling over onto her side. "Daisy?"

"Yeah?"

"Where's my son?" Rose asked.

"I'm not entirely sure..." Daisy replied.

"Oh." Rose muttered in reply. "Do you think you could find him for me?"

"Uh, I can try..." Daisy replied. She turned and started to walk out of the room, only to stop as she noticed that both of her parents were entering the room. "...Mom, have you seen Jake Jr.?"

"Oh, he's upstairs watching television..." Rose's Mother said. "...He's quite fond of it. Any reason you want to know?"

"I want to see him..." Rose answered, alerting her presence to her parents.

"Oh, you're home." Rose's Mother smiled. However, her smile soon faded when she saw how pathetic her daughter looked. "You just take it easy, Rose..."

"Can you get Jake?" Rose simply asked.

It took Rose's Mother a few seconds to realize that Rose meant her son. "Okay..." She said. She then turned around and walked out of the room quickly, leaving Daisy and Rose's Father in the room.

Ignoring her father and twin, Rose sighed as she tried her best to relax. However, she soon found to be rather impossible as there was a small poof of light in the room as a messenger fairy appeared right by the couch, holding an envelope. "Message for Rose Long..." It said as Rose slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position.

"Thanks..." She said in a sad tone as she slowly reached out and took the envelope. As the messenger fairy disappeared in the same poof of smoke, Rose ripped the envelope open as a magical mist spilled out, forming into an orb. As soon as the orb stopped forming, Rose could See Jake's smiling face.

"Hey, baby!" He told her. "How's my lady doin'?"

"Lousy..." Rose replied glumly.

As soon as Rose said this, Jake's smile faded and he looked down. "Look, I tried talking to Holly." He said.

"Jake, it's okay..." Rose told him. "...It really doesn't matter..."

Hearing this from his wife, Jake stopped talking and just stared at her for a few seconds, a somewhat sad look on his face. "I just want to help you out, Rose. I love you."

"I love you, too..." Rose answered. "...But it's okay. You don't have to go out of your way. I would like to see you in person, though. I'm sure your son would, too..."

"I'll be there on Thursday." Jake promised her. "There's no way that I'm going to let you go through your illness all by yourself. I'm going to be there. I'm going to be right by your side. I'm going to take care of you..."

"Okay, Jake..." Rose replied, a small smile making its way onto her face.

"I gotta go now, Rose..." Jake then told her, his voice almost a hushed whisper. Then, he disappeared.

"Uh-huh..." Daisy rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms. "...Of course he'll take care of you. Oh, wait! You mean just like how he's taking care of you now?"

"Daisy..." Her father started. "...Don't criticize your sister's choices..."

"Rose, dump him..." Daisy said. "...Get a divorce. You'll be happier..."

"No I won't..." Rose replied, slowly moving her arm over to her face and lifting her head up and moving her arm back so she could use her arm as a pillow. "...Jake just wants to help..."

"Mommy!" Just then, the sound of Jake Jr.'s voice called out, and the next thing Rose knew, her mother had re-entered the room holding the hand of a very small child, three years of age. It was true that Jake Jr. had his father's eyes and it was also true that he had his mother's smile. Rose's mother smiled as she released her grandson's hand, resulting in Jake Jr. running over to his mother's side.

"Hey, baby..." Rose smiled as her toddler son reached her. Her eyes sparkling, Rose slowly reached up and put her hand on his head, where there was a full head of black hair. "...How was your day? Did you have fun?"

As she continued to relish in the company of her young son, Rose couldn't help but realize that her parents and twin sister were still in the room. "Uh..." She said, switching her gaze from her son to the rest of her family. "...You guys can go now..."

"Actually, Rose..." A small smile formed on the face of her mother. "...Your father and I have a surprise for you girls. Daisy, you've been very busy, and Rose, you've been very depressed. So...your father and I made reservations for a fancy restaurant tonight. We wanted to surprise you."

"Ooohhh..." Daisy immediately shook her head. "...Love to, but I can't. I really can't. Like you said, I'm busy..."

"And I'm really tired..." Rose said. "...Sorry..."

"Oh..." Rose's mother seemed rather upset. "...Well, we can always stay home with you..."

"Are you kidding?" Her husband quickly retaliated. "That restaurant cost so much money to just reserve a table. We're going!"

Rose's Mother turned her head to the side as she watched her husband turn and walk out of the room. Sighing, she turned her attention back to her two daughters. "Do you want us to bring you home something?"

LINE BREAK

Rose's Mother sighed again as she sat in the passenger's seat of her husband's 2008 Jeep Liberty. Her husband, as he drove the jeep, which was starting to near an intersection, turned his head to look at his wife. "What's wrong?"

"I'm really worried..." Rose's Mother admitted. "...About Rose..."

"You can't think like that." He told her. "Rose is an adult now. She's perfectly capable of taking care of herself. We've known that for years..."

By this time, their car had reached the stoplight, which was at the red color. Sighing as he stopped the car, Rose's Father listened as his wife started to speak again: "She's so depressed..." She said. "...She's letting her illness get the best of her..." For a moment, Rose's Mother stopped in order to take a deep breath. "...I almost fear that one morning I'm going to wake up and find out that she passed away in the night..."

"Well, you probably will..." Rose's Father replied in a matter-of-fact tone. "...Don't you remember what that Holly girl said last year. Rose-" However, before he could finish his statement, he stopped when he noticed that the light turned from red to green.

Without finishing, Rose's Father took the wheel again as the car started to move across the intersection. "WHOA!" However, just as the car started to move, Rose's Father stepped on the breaks, causing the Jeep to come to a screeching halt as he saw a blur of a figure that was a Redwood color falling from the sky and onto the cement.

"What is that?" Rose's Mother asked, a horrified look on her face.

"I don't know..." Rose's Father responded as he reached over to the door. "...But I'm going to find out..." He then opened the door.

However, before Rose's Father could climb out of the car, the sound of whizzing came toward the Jeep, and just as the door to the driver's side opened completely, an arrow planted itself into the front tire.

In the blink of an eye, a fire erupted at the fletching and quickly went all the way down to the head in a millisecond. The second the fire touched the wheel of the car, the entire car combusted, all before Rose's Father even had the chance to get out.

The resulting explosion threw pedestrians who were on the sidewalks back into the walls of the buildings and caused cars that were coming up from behind the Jeep to be tipped over onto the back wheels before being thrown off of the cement, landing either on the side or on the sunroof several feet away.

Back on the sidewalks, those passerbys that were not seriously injured lifted themselves up and looked at the wreckage, their eyes widening in horror.

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

Back at the house, Rose had managed to fall asleep, while Jake Jr. sat on the floor beside the couch, staring at his mother. However, Rose moaned and slowly opened her eyes as she heard the sound of a loud, repeated ring coming from her side.

Slowly sitting up and turning her head to the side, Rose could see that a communication device that was on the small table next to the couch was ringing. Rose slowly reached over and grabbed it, and once she had it held up to her chest, she pressed the button, which released a holographic image of a man, who was about in his late fifties, wearing what looked like scrubs and an apron.

"Hello..." The man tried to sound cheerful. "...May I ask who I am communicating with?"

"Rose Long..." Rose told him sleepily.

"Yes..." The man replied. "...I think you need to come see me. I have two new arrivals that have been burned to a near crisp. I managed to identify them by their dental records, and I believe them...to be your parents..."

Hearing this, Rose's eyes widened, and she turned her head to the side, shouting at the top of her voice: "DAISY!"

LINE BREAK

At the nearest morgue, the mortician took off the apron as he stood in-between the two steel slabs. Lying on each slab was a body which was covered by a white sheet. The mortician walked over to the rack in the corner of the room and just as he put it on the rack, he heard a knocking at the door.

Turning around, the mortician could see two women. Both of them had blonde hair and blue eyes; they looked like twins. "Come in..." The mortician said, watching as one of the women quickly strode in, while the other one slowly walked inside.

"My sister tells me that you found two bodies..." The faster one said, while the slower one just reached her side. "...That have been identified as our parents..."

"Well, the dental records suggested that..." The mortician said. "...You see, I could not identify them by their looks because...well, because their bodies were burned to a near crisp. Also, it wasn't me that found them..."

"Well, you have them now..." Daisy said. "...Do you mind if I see for myself..."

"Yes, I'd actually prefer if you did..." The mortician said.

"Alright..." Daisy said, then she turned her head to the side and looked at her sister. "...Stay here, Rose..." As Rose nodded, Daisy walked over to the first table and waited for the mortician to arrive by her side. Once he did, he grabbed the white sheet and slowly lifted it up.

Once the sheet was lifted, Daisy peered down, only to have her eyes widen. Daisy's mouth slowly started to open and she made gagging noises before she brought her hand up to her mouth, keeping it there until her gagging noises slowly started to cease. As Daisy tried to calm herself, stepping to the side and turning around to avoid the sight, the mortician lowered the sheet.

"Are..." Daisy tried to ask, slowly turning back around to face the mortician. "...Are you sure that that's my mom or my dad?"

"I identified them as your parents...yes..." the mortician replied. "...If that is not good enough for you, however..." As he said this, he turned and started to walk over to a counter. Once he arrived in front of the counter, he picked up something and then turned around, starting to walk back over to Daisy. In his hands was a license plate to a car. "...Maybe you can identify this..."

He handed the license plate to Daisy, who slowly took it and looked down at the plate, her eyes widening as she read the bent and somewhat burned license plate. "Oh my God..." She muttered. "...It is them..."

As Daisy looked at the license plate, Rose's eyes widened as she heard the sound of panting from not very far away. Slowly turning around, she watched as Jake, her husband, ran into the room, panting. "Rose!" He exclaimed. "I got here as fast as I could! What happened!"

As Jake reached Rose's side, Rose slowly turned back around to see Daisy with wide eyes, the license plate lowered. "Rose..." She said, almost as if in a trance. "...It's really them. They're gone..."

"Wh...What happened?" Jake asked.

"Their car..." The mortician answered. "...Apparently...just...caught fire."

"Say what?!" Jake demanded as he put his hand on Rose's shoulder. "Are you kidding me?! You're not telling me that their car just combusted!"

"It's possible..." The mortician replied. "...It has happened to people. So...why not a car?"

"There could have been an oil leak..." Rose suggested, slowly crossing her arms. "...Or something like that. I...I just don't know..." Slowly looking down, she continued: "...What does it matter anyway? They're gone. That's all that matters..."

LINE BREAK

"Here we are..." Jake sadly said as he landed in dragon form right in front of the steps to Rose and Daisy's house. Daisy had her legs dangling over Jake's side, so she simply slid off and started to walk up the steps to the front door as Rose slowly removed her arms from around Jake's neck and slowly sat up before she slid off his back.

"Thanks, Jake..." Rose replied glumly as she slowly lifted her foot up to start climbing the steps.

"Here..." However, Rose only ended up gasping as Jake put his claws on her slide, standing right behind her. "...Let me help you..." He said gently as he started to flap his wings, lifting his wife off of her feet and flying her up to the top step, where Daisy was standing.

A little surprised, as soon as Jake let her go, she slowly turned around and looked at her husband. "I'm going to be here on Thursday. I promise..."

"I know, Jake..." Rose replied. "...I know you'll be here..."

LINE BREAK

In a very dark room, a large shadowy figure shaped like a dragon sat, a human-shaped shadowy figure stood beside him. The door to the room suddenly opened, letting in a bright light as two more dragon-shaped large figures walked into the room, stopping in front of the sitting dragon.

"You called for us?" One of them asked in a male tone.

"Joel..." The sitting dragon said. "...Cherri..." He addressed the other dragon. "...I called you in here because today, I have witnessed a murder..."

"What does this have to do with us?" The female dragon, Cherri, asked. "Does it have anything to do with the Magical World?"

"Indeed it does..." The sitting dragon replied. "...That is why I need you two to help me..."

"What do you need?" Cherri asked.

"I managed to get a good look of the victim's faces..." The sitting dragon said. "...And I now know that one of their daughters is a dragon. She could be very valuable. I want her..."

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

Daisy was sitting at the kitchen table with her chin in her hand as her elbow was placed on the top of the table, tears rolling down her cheeks. However, she lifted her head up and turned her head in the direction of the doorway when she heard footsteps.

Rose had entered the room, holding Jake Jr.'s hand. "Come on..." Rose told her son as she led him into the room. "...Let's get you some dinner..." Rose then let go of her son's hand and walked over to the refrigerator very slowly. As soon as she reached it, Rose slowly pulled open the door and looked around for something inside for a few moments.

Finally, Rose stepped back, holding a plate with a sandwich. Slowly turning around to face her son, Rose watched as her son's face lit up as he ran over to her, taking the plate from her.

"Rose..." Daisy took this time to speak to her sister. As Rose slowly turned her head to the side, Daisy continued: "...Can you send Junior out for a few minutes. I want to talk to you..."

"Okay..." Rose replied as Daisy sniffled. "...Jake..." She looked down at her son. She then slowly knelt down so that she could look him in the eye. Putting her hands on his shoulders, she said: "...Aunt Daisy and I need to talk about something important. Unfortunately, it doesn't concern you. Remember how I've taught you that it's not a good thing to be nosy?"

"Uh-huh..." Jake Jr. replied.

"Okay then..." Rose replied. "...Then be a good boy and go have your dinner on the couch. If you finish before I come out, I want you to stay on the couch until I come. Okay, sweetie?"

"'Kay."

"That's my boy..." Rose did her best to smile as she slowly started to stand straight up again, slowly putting her hand on her son's head and ruffling his hair.

As soon as Rose slowly pulled her hand away, Jake Jr. quickly turned and ran out of the kitchen. Sighing, Rose slowly turned around and slowly walked over to the table. Slowly pulling up the chair on the opposite side of Daisy, Rose slowly lowered herself into a sitting position with a sigh. "Okay..." She said. "...What?"

Daisy sniffled again before she answered. "We have to make the arrangements..."

"Oh, Daisy..." Rose sighed, rolling her eyes.

"What?"

"I don't care, Daisy..." Rose slowly shook her head. "...I really don't. I have way too much to deal with in my life."

"We need to honor what our parents wanted, Rose." Daisy said.

"Well, you can do that without me..." Rose told her, slowly getting up from her chair.

"Rose, I need your help!" Daisy said, watching as Rose slowly turn around and slowly walk out of the room. "These are our parents, Rose!" Daisy shouted, standing up from her chair. "How can you not care about your own parents?!"

"Because I'm dying, Daisy!" Rose shouted, slowly turning back around to face her twin. "Daisy, look at me. All I have is tomorrow, Daisy. After tomorrow, I'm going to fall ill again. Who knows what's going to happen. I find it very hard to be absolutely devastated when I could be leaving behind my three year old child."

Daisy seemed shocked. "Rose, you don't know that..."

"Yes, Daisy..." Rose replied. "...I do. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to spend some time with my son..."

Rose then slowly turned back around and slowly started to walk out of the kitchen once again.

LINE BREAK

"How much longer until we get there?" A Peridot-colored dragon and a Verdigris-colored dragon were flying in the air. The Peridot dragon had no hair while the Verdigris dragon had short brown hair. Hangin from both of their necks were medallions.

Hearing the Peridot dragon ask her this, she sighed as she looked down at the piece of paper that was in her claws. "We're getting close, Joel..." She told him. "...You don't have to be so impatient..."

"I like to be impatient..." Joel replied, smiling stubbornly at Cherri. "...And I really hope that we down have to drag her heavy dragon hide with us..."

"We just might have to..." Cherri replied.

LINE BREAK

It was pitch black outside and inside the house of Rose's parents, Rose was lying on the couch staring up at the ceiling. Lying on her stomach, wrapped in her arms was Jake Jr. As she continued to stare up at the ceiling, Rose opened her mouth and let out a loud and long yawn.

As soon as Rose finished yawning, she glanced to the side and saw that Jake Jr. was fast asleep, his head rolled to the side so that Rose was looking at the back of his head and the back of his neck. Smiling at the sight of her sleeping child, Rose grunted as she decided to sit up. However, she quickly found that she could not get up with her child lying on top of her.

"Need help?" Came a familiar voice, and the next thing Rose knew, Daisy was standing over her.

"That'd be nice..." Rose said, a small and hopeful smile on her face.

"Hold on..." Daisy said as she bent over, taking Jake Jr. in both her hands as she hoisted him up, stepping back, dangling Jake Jr. in the air, giving Rose the perfect opportunity to slowly sit up. Then as Rose slowly got to her feet, Daisy bent back over and set Jake Jr. back down on the couch.

"He can sleep here for the night..." Daisy said as she stood back up straight again.

LINE BREAK

"Here it is..." Cherri said as she lowered the piece of paper with the instructions on it, revealing the house of Rose's parents. "...This is where she lives..."

"Good..." Joel grinned.

"Now all we have to do is find a way inside..." Cherri said.

"No problem..." Joel's grin only widened. "...Why don't we just go in through the front door?"

"You can't be serious..."

"Of course not!" Joel defended. "I was just kidding. Have a sense of humor..."

"Maybe later..." Cherri shrugged him off. "...Okay, here's what I think we should do. We should split up. We'll both go around each side of the place looking through all of the windows until we either find a safe and quiet way inside or if we see her herself..."

"And what if you find the right window before me?" Joel asked. "How will I know? And what if neither of us find a quiet way in or her?"

"Ugh..." Cherri rolled her eyes at Joel's questions. "...Okay, how's this? You will come around the entire house, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, if I find the right window, I'll wait for you..." Cherri impatiently said.

"But what if neither of us find a way in or her?!" Joel asked again, seeming rather impatient himself.

"Then..." Cherri started to say, but she stopped, her cheeks turning red from frustration. "...Then we'll use the front door, okay? Now let's go!"

LINE BREAK

Back inside the house, Rose, who had changed out of her janitor's uniform and had changed into pajamas. She slowly walked into her bedroom and made her way over to her bed. Sighing, Rose slowly sat down on her bed and started to fall back onto her back, completely unaware that just outside her window, Cherri flew up.

LINE BREAK

From outside, Cherri peered into the window, her eyes widening as she saw Rose. "That's her!" Cherri exclaimed to herself. She started to pull up the window, but stopped when she realized that Joel was not there with her.

Sighing, Cherri flew back a few inches and crossed her scaly arms. "Come on..." She moaned to herself.

Finally, she turned her head to the side as she heard the sound of flapping wings. "I couldn't see anything." He told her as he came closer to her.

"Of course you didn't..." Cherri told him. "...Because I did. Take a look..." She pointed at the window just as Joel reached her side.

Looking into the window, Joel's face lit up as he watched as Rose slowly got under the covers of the bed, setting her head down on the pillow.

"Well, let's go in there!" Joel urged, turning his head to the side.

When he only got a nod of confirmation from Cherri, Joel returned his attention back to the window and slid it open. Quickly, the two dragons swooped into the room, landing on the floor. "So, now what do we do?" Joel asked. "How do we get her?"

"She's asleep..." Cherri said as she slowly started to walk over to the bed. "...All we have to do is grab her and leave. It's that simple..."

However, just as Cherri reached Rose's bed, the floorboard beneath her creaked. Cherri gasped in surprise while Rose's eyes snapped open. Rose slowly pushed herself up in her bed as Cherri stepped back in surprise.

From behind Cherri, Joel reacted quickly and started to flap his wings, lifting off of the ground and starting to fly toward Rose, slamming his tail into her before she could react.

Rose shouted as she flew across the room, landing on the floor with a thud. "You're not supposed to hurt her!" Cherri angrily turned around to tell Joel, just as on the opposite side of the room, there was a bright light as Rose transformed into her dragon form.

With a groan, Rose slowly managed to get to her feet. "Who are you?" Rose demanded, slowly holding up her claws to defend herself. "What are you doing here?"

"We don't want a fight..." Cherri told her.

"Yes you do!" Rose said angrily. "That's why you broke in here! Your goal is to attack me! Well, I won't let you!" With a grunt, Rose started to flap her wings, moaning as her slowly moving wings lifted her up off of the ground.

Rose, now in the air, slowly started to fly toward the two intruders in her room. However, as she was weak, her flight was slow, and every now and then, she started to dip toward the floor. However, Rose continued to try, grunting with effort as she continued to fly toward the two dragons.

On the other side of her bed, Joel sighed and rolled his eyes. "Okay, we're obviously not making progress with you..." With a grunt, Joel himself lifted off of the floor and flew over to Rose, slamming his tail into her face.

Rose grunted in pain as she flipped over, falling to the floor, unconscious. Looking down on her, Joel lowered himself to the ground and he started to inspect her entire body, his eyes widening as he reached her right clawed hand, where there was a purple Chinese Dragon mark. His eyes wide, Joel lifted up his left hand, where he looked down at the same Chinese Dragon mark, only it was black instead of purple.

"You idiot!" A hiss from Cherri made Joel lower his hand and turn his head to the side, Cherri reaching him there. "I told you not to hurt her!"

"She's fine..." Joel told her. "...Just unconscious. It was the only way..."

"You rash fool..." Cherri shook her head.

"Yeah, whatever..." Joel shrugged her off as he pointed down at Rose's right hand. "...Look..."

Although annoyed, Cherri looked down at Rose's hand nonetheless. However, when she saw her birthmark, her eyes widened and her annoyed look vanished. "The Huntsclan?" She asked. "Wait, this is the Huntsgirl? The one that destroyed the entire clan? You've got to be kidding me..."

"Well, are we just going to stand here gawking at her?" Joel asked, starting to bend over to grab Rose's arm.

"What are you talking about?" Cherri retorted, also starting to bend over. "You're the one that brought up the mark..."

Within a few seconds, both Joel and Cherri grunted as they stood back up, turning around as they each held onto one of Rose's arms. "Alright..." Cherri said. "...Let's go. Thanks to you, this is going to be a lot more difficult..."

LINE BREAK

With the window wide open, both Cherri and Joel managed to keep hold of the unconscious dragon Rose as they flew out of the window, flying into the night.

BLACKOUT; END EPISODE

**A/N: There's the very first episode. Hoped you like it. Please review. **


	2. Chapter 2

Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season One)

Chapter/Episode 2: Meet the Kidnappers

Rose found herself in total darkness when she woke up. She had no idea where she was or what was happening to her. However, what she did know was that she could hear hushed whispers from beside her. The next thing she knew, Rose gasped as she felt something being pulled off away from her face. However, for a reason unknown to her, her gasp came out as more of a muffled sound.

Standing in front of her were eight dragons. The one that was stepping away from her was clutching was looked like a black mask. The dragon was a Heliotrope-color and had what looked like a wooden leg. She wore a medallion around her neck as well as what looked like a cross. Beside the dragon was a Sapphire-colored dragon that also had a medallion and had long Sapphire-colored hair that touched her wings. Beside her was a Russet-colored dragon with a medallion who was a little overweight. Beside him was a Carmine-colored dragon, also wearing a medallion around his neck. Beside him stood a Tangerine-colored dragon that was much smaller than the others; the dragon had short red hair that touched her shoulders and beside her medallion, she wore brightly colored beads around both of her wrists. Beside her stood two dragons, one male and one female. They both wore medallions as well. One was female, as she was a Deep Peach-colored dragon and had long brown hair. The other dragon had more muscle and was a Gamboge color. Finally, beside them stood the Verdigris-colored dragon that had attacked her.

Her eyes widening, Rose started to growl, but found that there was something in her mouth; glancing down, Rose found that there were chains wrapped around her snout, and as she moved her tongue around, she found that there was a cloth stuffed into her forced shut mouth (which was open slightly). Her eyes wide, she slowly looked down to see that chains were wrapped around her upper body four times and her feet were bound together with more chains. Slowly turning her head to the side, Rose glanced down and saw that her hands were also chained behind her back.

"So..." Rose slowly started to turn her head back to the dragons when she heard one of them speaking and she quickly found it to be the Carmine-colored dragon. "...What do we do now?"

"We wait for Joel to come back." The Verdigris-colored dragon told him. "He should be back any second now..."

"Speaking of the devil..." The Gamboge-colored dragon said with a heavy Russian accent as he turned his head to the side. "...He's back..."

The next thing Rose knew, the eight dragons stepped to the side, spreading out into two rows of four as two dragons quickly approached. One was the Peridot dragon from earlier; he wore a medallion like the others. Beside him was a Bondi Blue-colored dragon. She also wore a medallion, but peculiarly, her medallion was bigger, as below the actual circular metal was a star. More odd than that, however, was that in her claws was a medium sized plastic cup.

The Peridot-colored dragon stopped at the side of the Carmine-colored dragon, while the Bondi Blue dragon continued to walk until she stopped right in front of Rose. Slowly kneeling down, the Bondi Blue dragon had a friendly smile on her face as she set down the plastic cup.

"Terribly sorry about the chains and the gag..." She said as she slowly reached up to the chains around Rose's snout. "...It's just...I needed some assurance that if you woke up before we had a chance to speak to you, you wouldn't get the heck out of here..." There was something about the voice to Rose. She couldn't put her finger on it, but the dragon's voice sounded familiar.

Finally, the chains around Rose's snout came undone and they fell down into Rose's lap as she opened her mouth, gagging as she spit out the cloth. As soon as she did that, Rose was met again with a smiling Bondi Blue dragon, who held the cup to her lips.

"Drink this..." The dragon told Rose. "...It'll get that nasty taste out of your mouth. It's not poison..."

Although a little nervous and distrusting at first, Rose finally gave in and opened her mouth as the Bondi Blue dragon tipped the cup, spilling the liquid into Rose's mouth. Rose gulped down the liquid, which turned out to be water, and as soon it was gone, the Bondi Blue dragon pulled the cup away. "Better?" She asked.

Grunting, the Bondi Blue dragon slowly stood back up and looked down at Rose, who slowly lifted her head to look up at her. "Do...Do I know you?" Rose asked.

"Why don't you see for yourself..." The Bondi Blue only widened her smile as she reverted to her human form, Rose gasping when the light faded, revealing the dragon's human form.

"Savannah?!"

"Surprised?"

"You..." Even though Rose was not actually answering Savannah's question, Rose's facial expression was doing that for her. "...You...You...You never told me that you were a dragon."

"I never thought I'd have to..." Savannah shrugged. "...Rose, this isn't really the time to talk about me being a dragon..."

"You're right..." Rose replied. "...This is about your friends kidnapping me..."

"Don't think of it like that..." Savannah shook her head. "...It's not like that..."

"No, it is..." The Verdigris-colored dragon said, crossing her arms. "...Trust me. I know. It is."

"Fine..." Savannah growled, almost as if she had just lost an argument. "...You were kidnapped. You're not in any danger though..."

"Ugh..." The Deep Peach-colored dragon moaned as she clenched her fists, the Gamboge dragon turning his head to the side to look at her. "...Would you just tell her already?"

"Rose..." Savannah told her. "...It was not my decision to bring you here. It was my superior's. He told me something that you need to know. That's why you're here. Rose...your parent's death...was not an accident. It was...murder..."

Savannah waited for Rose to respond, and fortunately, it did not take long. Unfortunately, Rose's reaction was quick; her eyes widened very briefly before her expression returned back to normal.

"Murdered?" She asked, her voice calm.

"Yes, Rose." Savannah answered sadly. "I'm so sorry. That is why my superior had you brought here. I would think that you of all people would want to see your parent's killer or killers to be brought to justice. We want you to have that chance..."

As Savannah said this, a "Hmph!" came from the Deep Peach-colored dragon, who crossed her arms. Savannah seemed to be expecting this, as she rolled her eyes. Savannah then sighed as she lifted up her hand, sharp claws forming in a bright light.

"I'm going to let you go now, Rose..." Savannah said softly, kneeling back down. "...Now, I need you to help me a little. Can you lean forward so I can get the locks?"

It took Rose a few seconds to respond, and once she finally did, she grunted as she leaned forward slowly, allowing Savannah to reach behind and start to work on Rose's chains.

Finally, Rose heard a click, and the chains binding her wrists fell away. As Savannah started to work on the chains around her upper body, Rose watched as the Verdigris-colored dragon quickly wandered over to her and bent down, starting to work on the chains binding her ankles.

Rose quickly heard two clicks, and she watched as the chains around her ankles fell away, the chains around her upper chest falling into her lap. "Need help getting up?" Savannah asked, stepping back.

"Sure..." Rose replied, slowly lifting her clawed hand up for Savannah to take. Grunting, Rose felt herself being pulled to her feet as Savannah took a few steps back, helping Rose to her feet.

"So..." Savannah said with a smile as soon as Rose was standing, putting her hands on her hips. "...Are you in?"

Rose just stared back at Savannah for a seconds before she turned around and slowly started to walk off, although it appeared as though she was going as fast as she could.

"Wai..." Savannah was taken aback by this action. "...Wait!" She quickly tried to follow Rose. "Where are you...?" However, Savannah stopped when she felt claws on her shoulder. Turning her head to the side, Savannah could see the Heliotrope-colored dragon standing behind her.

"Let me go after her..." She said softly. "...I'll talk to her..."

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

As Rose walked as quickly as she could through the place she was in, she as rather surprised to see that the only inhabitants were mermaids. "Huh?" Rose asked to herself in a confused tone. Finally looking up, Rose could see that the area she was in was contained in a large bubble.

"Mermaid City?" Rose asked.

LINE BREAK

Throwing open a door, Rose slowly walked into what turned out to be a bathroom. Walking as quickly as she could toward the sink, which had a mirror right beside it. As soon as she reached the sink and mirror, Rose reverted to her human form, putting her hands on the sink.

Staring at the mirror, Rose looked at her reflection for a few moments. Finally, she looked down, releasing a loud sob, finally allowing tears to fall from her cheeks. As she cried, she slowly lifted her head up, taking deep, heavy breaths as she stared at herself in the mirror.

However, her eyes widened as she heard the door open wide, the Heliotrope-colored dragon with the wooden leg stepping in. Sniffling, Rose slowly turned around to look at her.

"I'm sorry..." the dragon said to Rose. "...I'm sorry about your parents. It's not right. However..." As she said this, she took a step closer to her. "...I can promise you that they're in a better place..." It was then that, for the second time, Rose noticed the dragon's cross that hung from around her neck.

"Thanks..." Rose sniffled.

"My name's Angela..." the dragon replied, slowly holding out her claws. "...Despite these circumstances, it's very nice to meet you Rose..."

"H...How..." Rose managed as more tears rolled down her cheeks. "...How d...do you kn...know my name?"

"Savannah..." Angela replied, slowly lowering her claws. "...If you want, I can introduce you to the rest of the team..."

"I'd..." Rose started to say, but she stopped herself. "...Okay..." She answered.

LINE BREAK

Upon coming out of the bathroom, Rose was surprised to see that Angela was now in her human form. "Feeling better?" She asked as Rose slowly walked over to her.

"No." Rose answered as she reached Angela's side.

"I understand..." Angela replied, starting to walk with Rose, keeping her pace slow so Rose could keep up with her. As they walked, Angela looked out through all of the mermaids that she could see, finally spotting Joel and the Carmine dragon walking toward them. "...We can wait..." Angela told Rose softly, both of them stopping their walk as they waited for the two dragons to catch up to them.

"Good..." Joel said as he and the Carmine-colored dragon reached them. "...You found her. Where was she?"

"It doesn't matter, Joel..." Angela said. "...She's not your prisoner. She wanted to be alone. Can you really blame her?"

"Of course not..." Joel said after a moment. He then smiled at her and held out his clawed hand. "...My name is Joel. Sorry about kidnapping you. Cherri and I meant you no harm..."

"Okay..." Rose replied, even though the tone of her voice suggested it was more of a "whatever".

"...This is Coen..." Joel said, putting his hand on the shoulder of the Carmine-colored dragon.

"Hey..." Coen said.

"Hey..." Rose returned.

"Now, if you'll excuse us..." Angela said, putting her hand on Rose's shoulder. "...Rose needs to meet the rest of our team. If she's going to be working with us, she'd better get to know us better. Come on, Rose..." Starting to walk away from the two dragons, Angela led Rose away as they continued on.

LINE BREAK

Still in human form, Savannah exited a room and started to walk away. However, she stopped when she felt a presence behind her. Turning around, Savannah could see that Cherri, still in dragon form, was now in front of her.

"What is it?" Savannah asked as Cherri crossed her scaly arms.

"She's a slayer?" Cherri asked. "You never told us that she was the one who risked her life to destroy the Huntsclan..."

"Oh..." Savannah seemed a little surprised. "...You noticed her birthmark?"

"Yeah..." Cherri answered. "...Why didn't you tell us?"

"I actually thought it was fairly obvious..." Savannah said.

"No, it wasn't..." Cherri said as she lowered her arms. "...I never thought that you would be friends with an the ex-Dragon Council Agent that..."

"Stop it!" Savannah snapped. Now, it was time for her to cross her arms. "It wasn't her fault. She doesn't even know..."

LINE BREAK

After a few minutes, Angela and Rose came across the Sapphire Dragon, who was standing alone, rubbing her claws together. "Next up on the list..." Angela told Rose as the two of them started to walk toward the Sapphire-colored dragon, who was still rubbing her clawed hands together.

Finally, Rose and Angela reached the Sapphire Dragon, who was still busy scrubbing her clawed hands. As she was busy doing this, she seemed unaware of the two standing in front of her, only to be forced to look up as Angela cleared her throat. "What?" The Sapphire Dragon asked in an annoyed tone, and it was then that Rose looked down at the ground and saw that there was a very small bottle of Hand Sanitizer at her feet. "I'm busy." The Sapphire Dragon said, almost as if she was in some sort of distress.

"I can see that..." Angela said sympathetically. "...But I just wanted to introduce you to Rose."

"Hi..." The Sapphire Dragon said, still scrubbing her hands. "...I'm...I'm Lexy..."

"Hey..." Rose replied.

"Maybe we should be moving on..." Angela said, putting her hand on Rose's shoulder, gently leading her away. Lexy turned her head to the side, watching as Angela and Rose slowly walked away. Once they were out of sight, Lexy looked back down at her clawed hands, starting to rub them together again.

LINE BREAK

The Tangerine-colored dragon was sitting in the exact spot that Rose had been sitting in when Rose and Angela found her. "Come on..." Angela said as the two of them started to walk over toward her.

As they got closer, Rose could see that the Tangerine-colored had headphones in her ears and was holding a chocolate-chip sized iPod. "Lista..." Angela said as she and Rose reached her.

Even though Lista was listening to music, she could still hear Angela, so she looked up at her, reaching up and pulling one of the headphones. "Yeah?" She asked, but then she noticed Rose. "Hey..." She said. "...Feeling any better?"

"Not really..." Rose replied.

"Can't say I really blame you..." Lista said. "...It must be horrible. To lose your parents..."

"Yeah..." Rose replied.

"Rose..." Angela said, putting her hand on Rose's shoulder again. "...This is Lista. She is the youngest one on our team..."

As soon as Angela said this, a scowl immediately formed onto Lista's face. Rose quickly noticed this and as Angela started to speak again, Rose cut her off. "Is...Is Lista really...her name?"

"No..." Angela told her.

"Linda..." Lista said. "...But everyone calls me Lista."

"Oh..." Rose replied.

"Well, it's nice to officially meet you..." Lista said quickly, almost like she wanted to get back to the song that she was listening to. She furthered this by actually putting the headphone back into her ear.

"Yeah..." Rose agreed softly, just as Angela started to lead her away.

LINE BREAK

The overweight, Russet-colored dragon was exiting a building, a wrapped piece of chocolate in his claws. As the dragon closed the door behind him, he looked around to see if anyone was watching him.

Once he was certain that no one was around, he looked down at the candy bar that was in his claws. Smiling, the Russet dragon started to tear the wrapper at the top. However, just as the chocolate started to be revealed, he gasped when he heard a voice from his side.

"I thought you weren't supposed to have any more of those..."

Turning to the side, the Russet dragon dropped the candy bar to the ground as he saw that Rose and Angela were now standing in front of him.

"I..." The Russet dragon tried to explain.

"Savannah won't be happy..." Angela said. "...But I won't tell her. I honestly don't care if you reward yourself every once in a while..."

"Good to know..." The Russet dragon said carefully as he bent over and picked up the candy bar, groaning as he did so. "...I kind of wish that Savannah and Cherri were more like you..."

"No you don't..." Angela told him. "...Anyway, the reason I'm here is because I want you to meet Rose..."

"Oh..." The Russet dragon said as he looked at Rose. "...Hi...I guess..."

Rose didn't say anything. She just nodded in response, watching as the Russet dragon took a bite of the chocolate.

"Rose, this is Maverick..." Angela said. "...If you ever feel lazy or hungry, you can go to him..."

"Shut up, Angela..." Maverick replied.

"See, I told you that you didn't want Cherri and Savannah to be more like me..." Angela said with a small smile before she turned her head to the side, now looking at Rose.

It took Rose a few seconds to realize that Angela was looking at her. When she finally did, she slowly turned her head to the side.

"There are three more that you need to meet..." Angela said. "...I think we should get moving..."

LINE BREAK

"Okay, Rose..." Angela said in a warning tone as she and Rose neared a building. "...I just want you to know before you meet these two, you are probably not going to be loved..."

"I'm used to that..." Rose replied. "...In my thirty years of existence, magical bugs, dragons and even my own sister have tried to slay me..."

"You've been around..." Angela replied, her face filled with disgust. "...That is...if you're serious. I hope you're not joking. I don't like jokes like that..."

"Why would I joke like that?" Rose asked.

"Some people just like to..." Angela said as they finally reached the door. "...So, are you ready to meet them?"

"As ready as I'll ever be..." Rose replied.

"Okay then..." Angela said as she reached for the knob. Angela turned the knob and pulled the door open. "...After you..." She said, turning her head to the side to look at Rose.

Rose nodded as she slowly started to walk into the room. As soon as she stepped into the room, she found that the room was dimly lit and had two beds in each of the corners.

"Hello?" Rose asked as she took another slow step into the room, Angela right behind her.

"Gilda!" Angela shouted. "Arkadi!"

"There's no one here..." Rose said.

"I can see that..." Angela replied as she started to close the door. However, before she could finish closing the door, there was a thud before the door started to get pushed open, even though Angela was starting to close it. Her eyes wide with surprise, Angela quite literally jumped away from the door and turned around, watching as the door opened, a girl and a boy both walking inside.

Both looked like their dragon forms: The girl had long brown hair and the boy had plus-sized muscles. At first, the girl looked rather confused, but a frown quickly spread onto her face when she spotted Rose. "Get out..." She growled.

"Hold on, Gilda..." Angela said, putting her hand on Rose's shoulder. "...I want you to be civil for at least one minute. Rose, this is Gilda. And this..." She pointed at the boy. "...Is Arkadi. He is the Dragon of Russia..."

"How do you do?" Arkadi said politely, bowing his head.

"I've been better..." Rose replied.

"Yeah, so have I..." Gilda replied, crossing her arms. "...Get her out, Angela. I don't want her in here..."

"Well I don't want to be in here, either!" Rose shot back.

"Okay, okay..." Angela said, starting to lead Rose out of the room. "...We don't need any scuffles..." The two of them slowly started to walk to the door, and Gilda stepped to the side, her arms still crossed as she turned her head to the side, watching the two leave the room.

LINE BREAK

"What is her problem?" Rose growled as she and Angela slowly walked away from the room. "I don't even know her! How can she be such a witch?! I've done absolutely-"

"Rose..." Angela cut her off. "...It doesn't matter. All you need to know is that you just don't cross her..."

"But I want to know why..." Rose replied.

"Some people are just like that..." Angela said. "...You might want to know that Gilda isn't exactly the most popular dragon on the team..."

"That doesn't surprise me..."

"Just..." Angela said. "...Stay away from her..."

"That'll be easy..." Rose replied, stopping her walk. Angela immediately took notice, and she turned around to look at her.

"What do you mean?" She asked. "Staying away from someone isn't half as easy you'd think. She doesn't like you..."

"No, it will be..." Rose persisted. "...It will be. I'm not staying..."

Angela opened her mouth to say something else, but once her mind finally comprehended what Rose had just said, her eyes widened. "Wait, what?" She asked. "What do you mean?"

"I'm not staying here..." Rose replied. "...Angela, look at me. I'm in no shape to track down a killer. Angela, I have a child. I need to be with him..."

"But..." Angela started, but she stopped herself, nodding. "...I understand, Rose. I also commend your dedication to your child. Well, we should tell Savannah that you want to go..."

"She's not going to try to keep me here, is she?" Rose asked.

"No." Angela told her quickly. "Savannah isn't like that. She'll respect your decision..."

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

After a few minutes, Rose and Angela finally found Savannah, who was in human form, talking to the Verdigris-colored dragon. "Come on, Rose..." Angela said softly. Still holding Rose's shoulder, the two of them started to walk up to the two others.

"A-hem..." Angela cleared her throat as they finally reached them, making the Verdigris-colored dragon and Savannah turn their heads to the side.

Almost immediately, Savannah's face lit up. "Rose!" She exclaimed. "Good to see you again! And don't worry! My team and I are going to be with you all the way. Have you met the rest of the team?"

"I..." Angela said, even though she seemed to be having a difficult time telling Savannah this. "...I...I...I actually did introduce her to the rest of the team..."

"Well, I think there's one that you missed..." Savannah said as she indicated the Verdigris-colored dragon with a nod of the head to the side. "...Rose, this is Cherri. She's one of the dragons that-"

"Kidnapped me?" Rose asked.

"Yes..." Cherri replied. "...I'm sorry that Joel happened to knock you unconscious. I did not want him to do that. I'm also sorry that you had to find out only after being abducted from your home..."

"Well, if my husband can forgive easily..." Rose replied. "...I think I can too..."

Savannah's smile only widened as she watched the interaction between Cherri and Rose. "So..." Savannah said, clapping her hands together. "...I suppose you want to know more about what happened. Well, What I can tell you is-"

"Actually..." Rose cut her off. "...I don't want to know. I also don't want to chase down some killer. I appreciate you wanting to help me, but...I don't want your help..."

"You don't?" Savannah asked, her smile slowly fading.

"Well, not with finding the killer of my parents..." Rose replied. "...Besides, how do you even know it was murder? Were you there?"

"My superior was..." Savannah said urgently, almost as if she was trying to persuade Rose into changing her mind. Taking a step closer to Rose, she continued: "...He said the car exploded. For no known reason. It exploded. That's not natural, Rose..."

"Maybe it isn't..." Rose sighed. "...But I just want to go home, Savannah. Can you take me home?"

At this request, a confused look came on to Savannah's face. Then, she sighed. "Okay..." She said. "...We'll take you home. Just...give me a few minutes. I just...need to tell my team that you don't want us to pursue this case..."

"I didn't say that, Savannah..." Rose slowly shook her head. "...I said I don't want a part of it. If you want to hopelessly search for a killer that you think exits, I can't stop you."

"Well, let me tell them exactly that..." Savannah said with another sigh. "...Just...give me a few minutes. I'll have you home before midnight..."

"Can't you do it now?" Rose asked.

"I think it would be better if I told them now..." Savannah said, starting to turn around. "...If they try to come looking for me, they won't be able to find me. Cherri, please come with. Angela, stay with Rose..."

"Okay..." Angela said as Cherri turned around along with Savannah.

LINE BREAK

Cherri and a now dragon Savannah were standing in an empty room. "I hope they hurry up..." Cherri grumbled as she crossed her arms. No sooner had she said that did the door to the room enter. First came Joel, then Gilda and Arkadi, then Lista, then Coen, then Lexy, and finally Maverick.

"What's this all about?" Lexy asked.

"I'm going to explain all that..." Savannah said, holding up both of her clawed hands as all of her subordinates looked at her. Then, she sighed as she lowered her hands. "...I have some pretty bad news..."

"What?" Lista asked.

"If you'd just be patient, Lista, she'd tell you..." Cherri growled.

"I find that ironic..." Lista said, crossing her scaly arms.

"Pretty big word for someone who's still in high school..." Cherri shot back.

"Don't bring that up!"

"Would you all just be quiet?!" Savannah demanded, an aggravated look on her face. Then, she sighed yet again. "The reason I called you in here is because Rose doesn't want to find the killer of her parents. She wants to go home..."

"Good..." Gilda replied, a smug smile on her face.

LINE BREAK

Rose and Angela were both slowly walking around, when they started to get closer to one of the buildings. As they started to pass by the door, Rose's ear twitched as she heard voices.

"Maybe it's for the best that she doesn't want to help..." It was the voice of Cherri. "...No offense to her, but she's very slow and looks weak. I bet she fights like Lexy does..."

"Hey!" Came Lexy's voice. "No way! She'd be much slower than me!"

"I think she's just a little out of it..." Came Akardi's heavily accented voice. "...I also think she should stay. She deserves closure and justice..."

"No she doesn't..." Came Gilda's voice.

Sighing, Rose lowered her head as she continued to listen to the dragons on Savannah's team talk about her. "Come on, Rose..." Angela said softly. "...You shouldn't have to listen to this..."

She put her hand on Rose's shoulder, but Rose just shook her head, stepping to the side. "It's okay..." She said. "...Maybe I should explain why I don't want to stay..."

"You don't have to..." Angela started, but she stopped when Rose turned to the side and slowly started to walk into the room.

Inside the building, the discussion continued. Gilda started to open her mouth, but before she could say anything, everyone in the room heard a "A-hem".

Surprised, they all turned around, even more surprised to see that it was Rose. Suddenly, both Lista and Gilda grunted as both Savannah and Cherri pushed by them, both of them gasping when they saw Rose standing in the doorway.

BLACKOUT; END EPISODE

**A/N: This one's really short word wise. It's only about 4,800 words while all the others are 5,000 or longer. I don't know why. It came out as fourteen pages, which is what the last episode was (I think). I guess it was either how short the paragraphs were or it was just the font. Oh well. Please review. **


	3. Chapter 3

Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season One)

Chapter/Episode 3: End of a Dragon

"Rose..." Savannah was in shock over Rose's appearance. "...What are you doing in here? Where's Angela?"

"I'm right here..." Angela's voice came, and before Rose knew it, Angela walked up to her side, stopping in front of her. "...Rose heard you talking and she wanted to come in..."

"Don't worry..." Gilda said. "...We'll make this meeting quick so you can get the heck out of here..."

"I just..." Rose said. "...I just...thought that I...that I should explain to you why I am the way I am. I'm very tired and I don't think I have the energy to chase a killer that I don't even know exits. And even if my parents were murdered, why should I care?"

"WHAT?!" A look of extreme anger crossed the face of Gilda. Beside her, Arkadi looked rather disappointed as well. "How dare YOU?! How can you act like you just don't CARE?!"

"Maybe..." Rose sighed. "...It's because..." As she said this, she slowly wrapped her arms around her stomach, almost as if she was uncomfortable saying this. "...I really...I really don't care. I've been...so close to an untimely end so many times. There have been too many instances to count, actually. But...this is the closest to the end that I've ever been..."

"What are you talking about?" Cherri asked.

"Like you said..." Rose told her. "...I'm slow. I'm slow...and I'm frail. I act like I'm eighty..."

"We can change that..." Savannah tried to say. "...I know that you're...sad...I know, that you've lost a lot, Rose. But you can't lose your spirit..."

"Savannah..." Rose sighed. "...I lost that a year ago..."

FLASHBACK

_On the Island of Draco, the sun was starting to set. The large grassy field on the island was almost completely deserted. Only two living beings were out on the grass: twenty-nine year old Rose Long and her two year old son, Jake Long Jr._

_Rose was in her dragon form, her cape rustling in the wind as she laughed playfully, holding her two year old child in her claws. Jake Jr. was also laughing, blissfully unaware that his father might find this rather dangerous._

_Finally, after about another minute or so, Rose stopped flying in a circle and lowered herself to the ground, smiling as she turned her toddler son around and set him down on his feet. Jake Jr. was still laughing once his mother set him down and the toddler slowly turned around. Jake Jr. tried to wattle away, however, he was so dizzy that he only managed two steps before he fell onto his face._

_Despite seeing her child fall, Rose couldn't help but giggle, especially after she saw Jake Jr. roll over onto his back, laughing hysterically. Reverting to her human form, Rose started to walk over to her child. "Baby..." Rose was smiling as she reached her son, and as she collapsed on her knees, she reached out and grabbed her son, forcing him up into a sitting position. Holding his shoulders, she stared at him. "...One of these days, you are going to get your dragon powers. Then, you are going to be a powerful and brave hero..."_

_This put a smile on the toddler's face, and that smile only widened as his mother pulled him closer, wrapping her arms around him in a loving hug. Unbeknownst to either of them, from behind Rose, Jake Long, clad in his Dragon Council robes, slowly started to approach them. As Jake spotted Rose, he froze, watching as he wife bonded with their child; Jake could not help but smile._

_Finally, Rose pulled her arms away from her son. "It's getting late..." She told him. "...I think it's time for bed. Come on..." Reaching out, Rose took Jake Jr.'s hand as she slowly got to her feet. Once on her feet, Rose turned around, gasping as she saw that her husband was standing in front of her. "Jake..."_

_"Hey, Rose..." Jake smiled warmly as he crossed his arms. "...Having fun?"_

_"We had a lot of fun..." Rose told him, a smile of her own coming back onto her face. "...I was just getting ready to take Jr. to bed. You want to come with me?"_

_"Wouldn't miss it..." Jake replied._

_LINE BREAK_

_The sun had fully set and now Jake and Rose were sitting together at the tree. Rose was sitting in Jake's lap and she smiled happily, snuggling close to her husband as he held her tightly in his arms. Rose turned her head to the side and put her lips to Jake's cheek, giving him a loving kiss. However, as she pulled away, she saw that Jake's smile had faded._

_"Hey, what's wrong?" Rose asked._

_"Nothing..." Jake answered._

_"Don't give me that..." Rose told him. "...I know that look. You're worried about something..."_

_"Okay, so what if I am?" Jake replied. "It won't change anything..."_

_"Sure it will..." Rose smiled lovingly. "...If you would just tell me, I'm sure I would be able to help you out..."_

_"But that's just it, Rose." Jake told her, turning his head to the side. "You are the problem. Don't you know what tomorrow is?"_

_"Um..."_

_"Tomorrow's the day..." Jake told her worriedly. "...That you get sick..."_

_Almost immediately, Rose's face paled. "It is?" She asked. "I...I must have...lost track of the days..."_

_"Rose, I'm worried..." Jake said. "...Holly said that it could take a lot of your energy away..."_

_"But so far it isn't taking away my energy..." Rose told him as Jake removed his arms from around her chest. "...So far, I don't feel any worse for the wear. Sure it's a pain, but I've got my strength."_

_"But that could change..."_

_"Jake..." Rose said, leaning in to give her husband another kiss on the lips. "...I'm going to be okay..." She whispered. Then, she planted the kiss on his cheek. Then, with a grunt, she put her hands down on the grass and started to push herself up onto her feet._

_"What are you doing?" Jake asked her._

_"I'm going to go for a walk..." Rose said, turning around once she got to her feet. "...I want to enjoy the night. I want some time to be by myself..."_

_LINE BREAK_

_Rose had her hands placed behind her back as she walked along the grass. Sighing, she looked down at her moving feet. However, she stopped in her tracks when she heard the sound of rustling grass from behind her. Quickly turning around, she could see the Sinopia-colored dragon form of Affendi Zakhlis, the Dragon of Malaysia who was being considered for a spot on the Dragon Council._

_"What's he doing?" Rose asked herself as she watched him turn and start to walk toward the obstacle course. Curious, Rose started to follow him. _

_After a few moments, she reached the wall and crouched down, just enough to see what was going on inside the obstacle course. Affendi was standing all alone on the grass, looking around as if he was waiting for someone. Finally, Rose could hear the sound of flapping wings and quickly, a Raspberry Rose-colored dragon landed right in front of Affendi._

_Seeing the dragon, Rose had to put her hand to her mouth in order to conceal a gasp. She recognized the dragon as Rithisak Sakngea, the Dragon of Cambodia. He had been a member of the Dragon Council, but had been kicked off._

_"Well, Affendi..." Rithisak asked. "...Are you an official Councilor yet?"_

_"No, Rithisak..." Affendi replied. "...Not yet. I can feel it, though. I think I am quite close..."_

_Rose continued to listen carefully, trying her best to keep herself hidden. However, she nearly jumped when she felt a hand clamp down on her shoulder. Spinning around so that her back was to the wall. Panting, she could see that Jake was standing over her. "Rose, what are you doing?" He asked._

_"No...Nothing..." Rose managed to reply. "...Jake, you startled me..."_

_"Sorry..." Jake told her as he extended his hand for Rose to take. After a moment, Rose took it. "...Come on..." Jake said, turning around and putting his arm around Rose's shoulder. "...It's late. I think I need to put you to bed..."_

_"But, Jake..." Rose tried to say as Jake started to walk her away, completely unaware of the two dragons on the other side of the wall._

_"So, did you manage to get the Pure Dragon potion?" Rithisak asked, his eyes sparkling. "Because I personally think that it would be better if you stole it before you became Councilor Zakhlis. Don't you?"_

_"Yes..." Affendi said, looking down. "...But I don't have it yet..."_

_"You don't?" Rithisak checked, sounding disappointed, but not angry. "Well, I certainly hope you get it soon. I've waited long enough. If the powers of the Pure Dragon is the only thing that can get me to dominate Holly Jennings, then so be it. I will not answer to that worthless woman. Women have no business running a Council of Dragons..."_

_"I know..."_

_"Well, Jennings sure doesn't..." Rithisak told him. "...That's why I'm off the Council. For now..."_

_"I know..." Affendi replied. "...But that's what I wanted to tell you. I know where it is. Councilor Jennings has it hidden in her quarters. She's been trying to keep it hidden for all these years. Once I finally get my claws on it, you can finally have your place back on the Council..."_

_"And more..." Rithisak said, a cruel smile crossing his face. "...And more..."_

_BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL_

_BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW_

_Rose smiled as she lied down on her bed, Jake smiling back as he placed the covers over her body. "Everything's going to be okay..." Rose told him as Jake slowly pushed himself up from the bed. _

_"I hope so, Rose..." Jake told her. "...But just know that I will be with you tomorrow. I'm going to take care of you..."_

_"I know..." Rose told him._

_LINE BREAK_

_The next morning, Jake opened his eyes to find his room dimly lit. Groaning, Jake sat up and turned his head to the side, looking down as he found his wife lying on the bed next to his. She was lying on her back and was in her dragon form, suffering from her now active illness. "Babe..." Jake said softly as he climbed off of his bed and took the few steps toward Rose's. "...It's okay..."_

_However, as he got closer to his wife and looked down at her, he was horrified to see that Rose's condition was worse than he had ever seen. Her body was tense, just like the past two times she had gone through this, but on top of quick and panicked breaths, there were also tears forming in her eyes. Ever couple of seconds, her tense body would violently jerk upward. _

_LINE BREAK_

_The next morning, the sun was starting to come up as Rose groaned. Lying on her bed, she slowly opened her eyes. She stared up at the ceiling, reverting to her human form. Groaning again, she attempted to roll over, only to find that her body refused to give in to the command that her mind was giving it._

_Giving a tired "Huh?" Rose glanced down at her arm as she tried to move it; giving a grunt, she attempted to lift it. However, just like before, it stayed down. "Wh..." Rose started, however, before she could start to panic, the door to the room opened and Jake stepped inside in his human form, carrying a tray._

_"Hey, baby!" He smiled at her as Rose glanced to the side. "You made it!" He told her as he started to walk over to her bed. "I guess you were right. However, what you need to do now is rest and regain your strength..."_

_He finally reached Rose's bed and he sat down beside her. "...I brought you some food and water. It's soup..." He said, looking down at the bowl. "...I figured that it would be easier for you..."_

_"Jake..." Rose said, her voice cracking. "...Jake..."_

_"What, babe?" Jake smiled down at her._

_"I...I can't move..." Rose told him. "...Look..." She glanced down at her arm as she demonstrated her predicament; grunting, she tried to move her arm. However, instead of her arm moving, all she got was a small twitch from her index finger. "...Jake..." Rose gave a worried look to her husband. _

_"It's okay, Rose..." Jake told her softly. He gently put the tray on his lap before he reached the side and grabbed Rose just under her armpits. With a grunt, he then hoisted her up into a sitting position, scooted her back against the wall and then left her sitting against the wall as he took his hands away from her. "...It's going to be okay..." Jake said as he turned around, setting the tray on her lap before picking up the bowl of soup. "...I'm going to take care of you..."_

_Jake then pulled the spoon out of the bowl and moved it toward her mouth. Rose opened her mouth and Jake put the spoon inside, spilling the soup into her mouth. As Rose swallowed, Jake smiled as he pulled the spoon out of her mouth and put it back into the bowl. Once the spoon was filled with liquid again, Jake pulled the spoon back out and started to lean in to put it in Rose's mouth again._

_LINE BREAK_

_The sun had gone down, leaving the moon in its place. In Jake and Rose's room, Jake and Rose were lying on the same bed, both on their sides. Jake smiled as he pulled his lips away from her forehead. "Are you feeling any better?" He asked._

_Rose couldn't help but smile as she looked at her husband. "I love you..." She told him._

_Unbeknownst to the two dragons, the door to their room was wide open. Outside the room, in the hall, there was a quickly flash of a large Sinopia-colored figure._

_LINE BREAK_

_The next morning, Rose moaned as she opened her eyes, finding the room filled with light. Letting out another moan, Rose glanced to the side to see Jake, in his human form, walking toward the door. Just as Jake put his hand on the door, her heard her groan._

_Turning around to face her, Jake sighed. "Sorry, but I gotta go..." He told her. "...Rin came in here and woke me up. The Pure Dragon potion has been stolen from Holly's room..."_

_"Wh...?" Rose started, but Jake cut her off as her eyes widened._

_"We thought we got rid of all the vials..." Jake sighed. "...Apparently, Holly kept one of them. Someone must've known. Look, I've gotta go. I'll be back as soon as I can..." Jake then turned back around and pulled open the door, stepping out._

_"Wait..." Rose tried to call him back to her. "...Jake..."_

_However, once she realized that Jake was not coming back, Rose knew that it was up to her. Grunting, she tried her best to lift up her arm. To her surprise, it lifted off of the bed. However, it was slow and as it rose into the air, it sent a feeling of ache through it._

_"Okay..." Rose said to herself as she focused. Taking a deep breath, she slowly lowered her arm back down onto the bed. "...You can do this, Rose..." Grunting again, Rose slowly lifted up her head so she could look down the rest of her body. Glancing at each of her arms, Rose grunted as she slowly pulled them up; it took about a minute for her to get her shoulder blades to reach her cheeks._

_Once she got them where she needed them to be, Rose grunted again as she forced herself into a sitting position. It took about another minute and at more than one point, Rose felt like her arms would give out and she would fall back onto the bed. However, Rose refused to give up and she managed to sit up completely._

_Exhaling, Rose wanted to smile, but she knew that the hardest part was still ahead. Grunting, Rose slowly managed to turn herself around and she slowly managed to put her feet on the floor. "Okay, Rose..." Rose coaxed herself again as she used her hands to push herself onto her feet._

_Rose grunted as she pushed herself, and very slowly, she managed to get herself onto her feet. Rose chuckled nervously as sweat started to form on her forehead. "...Okay..." Rose said to herself. "...Let's go see what's going on..."_

_Slowly, Rose took a step, however, once her foot touched the ground, Rose had some difficulty moving her other foot. "Come on..." Rose said to herself. "...Come on..." Slowly but surely, she managed to get her other foot off of the ground, continuing her slow move to the door of the room she shared with her husband._

_LINE BREAK_

_Outside on the grass, Rose stopped walking in order to catch her breath. However, she soon found that she did not need to go any farther. She could see Jake, along with Callum and Rin, all standing together to corner Holly. However, when she saw that Councilor Rin stepped in front of Jake and Callum and pointed at Holly, shouting at Holly, Rose's eyes widened._

_LINE BREAK_

_"How could you keep the potion?!" Rin shouted at Holly._

_"I...I told you that I was going to..." Holly said softly, taking a step back. "...For...for research. I wanted to see how it was made..."_

_"Do you know what you just did?!" Rin demanded._

_"Councilor." Callum told Rin firmly. "Back off. Councilor Jennings is a living being. She isn't immune to mistakes. Step away from her..."_

_Rin opened her mouth, wanting to say something to Holly. However, she nonetheless listened to Callum and stepped back right next to Jake, revealing Rose, who was slowly walking up to the Council. "What's going on?" She asked, making Holly, Callum, Jake and Rin all turn their heads to the side._

_"Rose?" Jake asked._

_"Councilor Jennings kept the Pure Dragon potion..." Rin said scathingly. "...And now it's been stolen..."_

_"That's no reason to yell at her, though..." Rose tried to tell her. "...It still can be reclaimed..."_

_"I certainly hope so..." Callum replied, shaking his head._

_"Oh, don't worry..." Another voice suddenly spoke up, and Jake, Callum and Rin turned around quickly, Rose turning around at a slower pace, where they could see Rithisak flapping his wings as he lowered himself onto the grass. In his claws was the vial with the potion inside. "...In fact, it has fallen into my possession..."_

_"How...How did you get that?" Holly asked, her eyes slowly filling with relief._

_"It doesn't matter..." Rin said, talking a step closer to the Raspberry Rose-colored dragon. "...Please give us back the potion..."_

_"No..." Rithisak replied, pulling back the vial that was in his claws, touching it to his scaly-chest. "...No." He repeated. "I'd much rather your question..." He addressed Holly. "...Why don't you consult my accomplice?" _

_As Rithisak said this, Jake, Holly, Rose, Rin and Callum all looked up into the air when they heard more flapping, and they all could see Affendi landing beside Rithisak. "Wh...What..." Holly seemed very surprised. "...What's...going on?"_

_"I didn't think you'd understand..." Rithisak grinned before he turned his attention to Affendi. "...You see, my friend? I told you that as a woman, Holly Jennings can't handle the job she has..."_

_"Hey!" Rin growled. "That's the attitude that got you kicked off this Council."_

_"But I was right..." Rithisak told her. "...She acts like she's in charge. She bossed me around when in reality, she doesn't even know what's going on. Who does she think she is?"_

_"It's her job..." Jake growled, clenching his fists. "...She's the Head of the Council..."_

_"She's a woman..." Rithisak growled. "...And Councilor Holly Jennings is the woman that proves that all women aren't strong or powerful enough to lead an entire Council..."_

_"And what makes you think that you can, punk?" Jake demanded._

_"I have what will make me a superior leader, Councilor Long..." Rithisak said as he held the vial with the Pure Dragon potion inside closer to his face. "...After I drink this, I will have all the power I need. I will be a much better leader..."_

_"You stole it..." Holly replied, her eyes wide._

_"Well, once again, that just proves how pathetically stupid you are..." Rithisak said. "...I didn't steal it. My friend did..." As he said this, he pointed at Affendi._

_"What?" Holly's eyes widened as she looked at Affendi. "But...But why?"_

_"Because..." Affendi replied. "...He told me that you let the power get to your head..."_

_"What?" Holly stammered. "No. That's...That's not true. The only reason he thinks I'm bossy and a power-hungry tyrant is because-Dragon Zakhlis, I never bossed him around. I asked him to do a few things to keep my stress levels lower than what they usually are. Please, don't-"_

_"I think we've had enough..." Rithisak growled, cutting Holly off as he reached down and took off the lid to the vial. "...I also think we're done here..."_

_"You're right..." Rose said, narrowing her eyes as she took three very slow steps closer to the two dragons. "...You are done. Give back the potion or I will be forced to take it back from you..."_

_"You?!" Rithisak laughed. "You're just a young girl. What can you do to hurt a dragon like me who has had much more experience?"_

_"That's where you're wrong..." Rose said as she slowly reached for her belt, grasping her staff. "...I have plenty of experience..." As she said this, she slowly pulled her staff out from its place on her belt. Watching her as she stretched out the staff, Rithisak growled as he turned his head to the side so he could look at Affendi._

_"Take care of her..." He growled._

_Affendi nodded before he spread his wings and flew into the air, flying toward Rose. Rose tried to swing her staff, but her arm movement was too slow, allowing Affendi enough time to slam his tail into her stomach and chest, throwing Rose back and off of her feet. Rose grunted as she flew back, Holly, Rin, Callum and Jake all having to duck as Rose flew by them._

_"Rose!" Jake shouted as he turned head to the side to see her land on the grass, unconscious._

_"Councilor Long..." Callum told him quickly. "...Check on her. Rin and I will deal with the traitors..."_

_Jake nodded in understanding, and as he turned and started to run over to his fallen wife, Rin, Callum and Holly all transformed into their dragon forms, looking straight to see Affendi flying toward them. "Stop Councilor Sakngea!" Rin told Holly. "We'll deal with Dragon Zahklis..."_

_Holly nodded, watching as Rin and Callum both flew toward Affendi, both of them slamming into him and throwing him back. Knowing that Affendi was taken care of, Holly looked out and found Rithisak starting to bring the vial up to his mouth. "No!" Holly shouted. Flapping her wings as hard as she could, Holly took off into the air and started to fly toward the Raspberry Rose-colored dragon._

_With a grunt, she slammed into Rithisak, who as Holly landed on her feet, fell onto his back. Rithisak looked frantically up into the air, his eyes widening as he saw the vial soaring up into the air. Then, once the vial was at a certain point in the air, it stopped ascending and after a few seconds, it started to descend back to the grass._

_LINE BREAK_

_Panting, Jake reached Rose's side and knelt down onto his knees. "Rose..." Jake's eyes were wide as he looked down at his wife, who was still unconscious. "...Rose..."_

_"Councilor Long!" However, Jake was forced to turn his head to the side when he heard the voice of Councilor Rin. He could see both of them in the air fighting Affendi. Affendi blew a ball of fire at Callum. As Callum ducked, it gave Rin a chance to dive down and grab the Sinopia-colored dragon by the tail. "Get her to safety!" Rin shouted as she pulled Affendi up and started to twirl the now shouting traitor in a circle._

_Jake nodded before he turned his attention back down to his wife. "Arms of the dragon..." Jake commanded and in a bright blue light, his two red scaly arms appeared. Quickly, Jake scooped Rose up in his arms and got to his feet, turning and running toward a building as Rin finally threw Affendi down onto the grass._

_Affendi grunted as his belly hit the grass, but to make sure that he didn't get back up, Callum swooped down and landed on his knees on the grass, bending over and holding Affendi down. "Councilor!" He shouted, turning his head to the side and glancing into the sky as he struggled to hold down Affendi, who was struggling against his grip. "Please help me!"_

_To Callum's surprise, Rin shook her head as she flapped her wings, keeping herself in the air. "You can manage him!" She shouted back down to him. "I have to assist Councilor Jennings!"_

_LINE BREAK_

_Moaning, Rose slowly opened her eyes, finding Jake and Holly standing at the side of her bed, both in human form. Groaning, Rose slowly turned her head to the side. "Wh...?" She started._

_"You're in the hospital..." Jake told her._

_"And those two dragons?" Rose asked._

_"Both defeated." Holly said, a serious and somewhat sad look on her face. "But that shouldn't concern you right now. You need to get rest. Stay here in this bed, okay? Right now, I need to talk to Jake about something very important. We'll just be outside the door..."_

_"Why don't you do it in here?" Rose asked, somewhat confused._

_For once, Holly said nothing. Completely ignoring her friend, Holly turned around and started to walk toward the door. "Come, Jake..." She ordered softly._

_A little surprised by Holly, Jake turned his head to the side briefly before he returned his attention to Rose. "Sorry, Rose..." He said softly, starting to turn around to follow Holly. "...We'll both be right back..."_

_He then started to follow Holly out of the room. Once he passed through the door, Rose just blinked in surprise. Then, her eyes narrowed. "Ear of the dragon..." Rose whispered, and in a bright light, a yellow ear took the place of one of her normal ears._

_Although the voices of Jake and Holly were hushed, Rose could now hear everything that they were saying perfectly:_

_"Jake..." Holly said. "...It's not good. When Rin and I checked over Rose, we found something very unsettling. Jake, Rose's illness is progressing much more rapidly than I first thought."_

_"What are you talking about?" Jake's concerned voice came._

_"Jake..." Holly replied with a sigh. "...The illness has weakened her body. That's why she was taken down so easily. Jake, it's only going to get worse from here on. Jake, I don't want to say this, but-"_

_"Just say it..." Jake told her darkly. "...I can take it..."_

_"Jake, Rose doesn't have much time left..." Holly told him quickly. If one attack left her this crippled, then who knows what will happen next year. Jake, what I'm trying to tell you is that in one year's time, on this very day...there is a strong possibility that Rose won't be here..."_

_"Are you sure?" Jake asked. His voice became even more hushed, and Rose could only imagine the pain that her husband was feeling in his chest at the moment._

_"No one can be sure of anything, Jake..." Holly told him. "...I'm not an oracle. However, I think that if you got an oracle, the oracle would tell you that at most, Rose only has about four to five years left to live. And that's at most. Jake...I'm really sorry..."_

_After this, there was a brief pause. At first, a wide-eyed Rose thought that they were done talking, but her thought was proven wrong when she heard Holly speak again, but what Holly said shocked Rose to the point where her eyes widened even more. "Jake..." She said. "...Rose can't stay here..."_

_"What?" Jake asked._

_"...She can't keep doing this..." Holly said with another sigh. "...She can't keep fighting magical creatures. She can't serve this Council anymore. It's too dangerous for her..."_

_"But..." Jake started, but then he stopped. "...Holly..." He began again. "...Please don't do this. It would break her heart..."_

_"I don't care about her hurt feelings, Jake." Holly told him. "I care about her well-being. I'm sure Rose will understand."_

_"What else could she do?" Jake asked her. "Working for the Magical World is what she does. How else could she find a job on this island?"_

_There was a pause before Holly spoke again. "That's just it, Jake..." She said. "...I don't think she should stay here. I think it would be best if she got away from the Magical World. What she needs to do is take it easy and focus on her family, and you know it, Jake..."_

_LINE BREAK_

_It was late in the afternoon, and outside the home of Rose's parents, Rose's Mother, Father and twin sister were all standing on the front porch, looking up in the sky as a large red dragon landed on the sidewalk, Rose sitting on his back, Jake Jr. right in front of her, Rose's arms on his shoulders._

_As he saw his grandparents and aunt, Jake Jr. happily slid off of his father's back and waddled up the stairs as quickly as he could, where Rose's Mother wrapped her arms around him and hoisted him off of his feet._

_"Easy, Rose..." Jake advised as Rose slowly slid off of his back. As soon as Rose was on the ground, she slowly turned around as Jake stood back up. "...It's okay..." He told her as Rose stared up at him with wide, sad eyes. "...Rose, this is for the best..."_

_"I k...know..." Rose managed._

_"I'm going to send you a message every day." Jake promised. "And I'll be here in person whenever I can. Rose, I'd quit my spot on the Council if I could..."_

_"No." Rose told him firmly. "You can't do that. The Magical World needs you. Don't abandon your duties because of me."_

_"Okay..." Jake nodded in understand. However, he couldn't get over how sad she looked. "...Hey, come here..." Jake whispered, taking a step closer to her. Once he was right in front of her, he wrapped his scaly arms around her, pulling her close._

_As quickly as she could, which was quite slow, Rose wrapped her own arms around her husband. A few seconds later, Rose gave up on her attempt to stay strong, and as the tears started to roll down her cheeks, she opened her mouth and released a loud sob. _

_"Why did this have to happen?" Rose asked. "Why?"_

_"I don't know, babe..." Jake said softly as he held her. "...But it's going to be alright. I'm here for you. I always will be, even when I'm not here in person..."_

_"I know..." Rose sniffled, taking a small step back as she removed her arms from him. _

_"Holly said..." Jake told her as he pulled his arms away. "...That if you really want, she can help you get some kind of job..."_

_"That's okay..." Rose replied. Then, sniffling, she said: "...You should probably be getting back to the Island of Draco..."_

_"I know." Jake replied. "I just...don't want to leave you."_

_"Go." Rose said firmly, despite the tears that were still rolling down her cheeks. "You're needed, Mr. Dragon Councilor."_

_Jake nodded in understanding and he quickly spread his wings. "I love you." He told her. Watching as Rose slowly shook her head in reciprocation, Jake slowly turned around and started to flap his wings._

_Rose watched as Jake flew into the air. Then, once he finally disappeared, Rose's lips started to quiver and she slowly turned around to face her family, tears still rolling down her cheeks._

LINE BREAK

As Rose finished telling her story, she wasn't surprised to see shocked looks on everyone's faces; everyone except for Gilda, who just scowled.

"The point of the story..." Rose spoke up again. "...Is that I want nothing to do with this. I'm dying. The last thing I want is to go chasing after a killer that possibly doesn't even exist. And even if he does, why should I care if my parents were taken in the form of assassination or an accident? Why should I care...when I could be leaving this world in just over twenty-four hours?"

"You see, you don't know that..." Savannah tried.

"Okay, so maybe I have another year..." Rose replied. "...Maybe two. Maybe three. Still, that really makes me wonder why I should care..."

"It's about justice, Rose..." Savannah replied.

"No." Rose slowly shook her head. "It's not about justice. It's not even about my parents. This is about my child that I am going to be leaving motherless. This is about my child that I need to get home to..."

Rose then slowly turned around and then slowly walked out of the room, into the night.

BLACKOUT; END EPISODE

**A/N: Please review.**


	4. Chapter 4

Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season One)

**Disclaimer: I don't own AD:JL.**

Chapter/Episode Four: Villain From My Past

Rose, now in human form, was sitting outside. She was near the bubble-like wall that kept all of the water out, and as she stared at the water. She was so busy that she did not hear the footsteps that were coming from behind her. Rose suddenly gasped as she felt a tapping on her shoulder. Slowly getting up, Rose turned around to see a girl.

The girl wore a Heliotrope-colored T-shirt and wore the medallion as well as a cross around her neck. She had short red hair and wore very short cut-off jeans, allowing Rose to see her prosthetic leg. "Angela?" Rose asked, a little surprised.

"Hey..." Angela said. "...I just wanted to tell you that Savannah really disagrees with your decision..."

"I don't care..." Rose replied, narrowing her eyes.

"...However..." Angela said after a brief moment. "...She also honors it. She's going to take you home. Or, do you think you can manage on your own?"

"Uh..." Rose started, but she stopped when she saw three dragon approaching Angela from behind. Rose quickly recognized them as Savannah, Joel and Cherri.

"It would be rude to not assist her home..." Savannah told Angela as she, Joel and Cherri stopped beside her. "...So of course we'll be escorting Rose home..."

LINE BREAK

In the moonlight, the waters of the sea were quite calm. However, just below the wooden docks of the harbor, the surface of the sea started to bubble; seconds later, a large transparent, circular submarine surface. Immediately, a latch opened from the top, and a transparent escalator ascended out, reaching the deck as Savannah, Joel, Cherri and Rose, all in their dragon forms started to get carried up.

Savannah, Joel and Cherri all touched the wooden dock and they all turned around to see Rose standing behind them. "Good to see that you're still with us..." Cherri commented, earning a quick glare from Savannah.

The three dragons then turned back around and all started to flap their wings, flying into the air. Still on the dock, Rose stared up at the three dragons for a brief moment before she slowly started to flap her wings. Rose hoped that her wings would go faster after a few seconds, but to her disappointment, they did not. Instead, her moving wings only served to send a shiver of pain running down her back. Groaning from the pain, Rose stopped flapping her wings and merely continued to stare at the three dragons that were flying away.

However, Savannah seemed to realize that Rose was missing, for she stopped in her tracks and turned around in the air as Cherri and Joel realized that their leader had stopped, stopping themselves. Seeing Rose still on the dock, Savannah flapped her wings and flew down to the dock, landing right in front of Rose.

"Aren't you coming?" Savannah asked. "I thought you wanted us to take you home..."

"I do..." Rose replied softly.

"Then why aren't you coming?" There was no annoyed tone in Savannah's voice. Instead, she seemed genuinely confused.

"Savannah..." Rose said, not knowing how to put it. "...I can't-my wings-" She tried a different approach, but she quickly decided that it was not the best way. "I...I ...I can't fly..."

"What do you mean?" Savannah asked as Cherri and Joel started to fly back over to Savannah, stopping just above her.

"I haven't..." Rose tried. "...I haven't...flown...in a very long time..."

"You're rusty?"

Rose opened her mouth to reply verbally, but she quickly chose against this, instead just nodding. To her surprise, Savannah just chuckled. "You shouldn't have had such a hard time telling me that, Rose..." She said. "...I understand. It must be very difficult for you right now. Why don't you power down and get on my back?"

"Okay..." Rose said softly, quickly reverting to her human form. Once Rose was in her human form, Savannah smiled as she turned around so that her back was to Rose. Rose then slowly approached the Bondi Blue dragon as she bent over, allowing Rose to slowly get onto her back, almost as if she were mounting a horse.

"I think you should know by now that you need to hold on..." Savannah said as she started to flap her wings. Slowly nodding, Rose slowly reached down and put her hands on Savannah's shoulder blades, just as Savannah lifted off of the ground, starting to fly up to where Joel and Cherri were waiting.

"What was that about?" Cherri asked as Savannah flew up and reached her and Joel.

"It's nothing..." Savannah said as she flew in-between her two comrades, continuing on into the night. "...Come on." She ordered.

Sighing, Cherri shook her head before she and Joel turned and started to follow Savannah.

LINE BREAK

Angela found herself staring at the remainder of her team as she re-entered the room that Savannah's meeting had been in. "Well, at least she's gone..." Gilda had been saying. "...I never wanted to start a case like that anyway..."

"Let me guess why..." Angela spoke, crossing her arms, making Gilda turn around just as Lexy was about to open her mouth. "...Is it because-?" Angela asked, but she stopped when she heard a growl coming from the Deep Peach-colored dragon.

"Shut up!" Gilda barked. "Well, what about you?" She narrowed her eyes. "I bet you wouldn't want to pursue a case where-"

"It wouldn't be about me if that were the case..." Angela told her. "...It would be about the victim. I already made my choice. You didn't."

"I never got to..." Gilda replied. "...I'm glad that she's gone..."

Angela then watched as Gilda stepped to the side and walked out of the room. As Gilda left the room, Angela stared at the other dragons that were in the room, all of them staring at her. Arkadi was the only one to make any movement, and when he did, he quickly walked up toward to Angela, briefly stopping in front of her. "I don't think you should have said that to her..." He told her in his heavy accent.

"I don't know if I had any other choice..." Angela whispered. "...She needs to learn that it's not just about her. This is about Rose. She needs to learn to think of others..."

Arkadi said nothing, but from the look in his eyes, Angela could tell that he agreed with her. Without saying anything, Arkadi stepped to the side and walked out of the room, following Gilda.

LINE BREAK

"You doing okay up there, Rose?" Savannah asked as she flew in-between Joel and Cherri. As Savannah flew, Rose had slowly lowered herself onto her belly, resting the side of her head on her neck. "Rose, talk to me..." Savannah seemed concerned. "...Are you okay?"

"She's fine..." Cherri said as she turned her head to the side, looking at Rose, whose eyes were closed. "...She's resting. She's had a long day..."

"Tell me about it..." Savannah muttered as she returned her attention back to the path ahead of her.

LINE BREAK

"Rose..." Rose moaned as she heard the sound of Savannah's voice, followed by a soft shaking on her shoulder. Slowly opening her eyes, she could see Cherri pulling her claws away as she backed up in the air.

"What?" Rose asked, slowly picking herself up off of her belly and back into her sitting position. However, as she did so, she answered her question. In front of her was the house that had belonged to her parents. Savannah, Joel and Cherri were dropping her off right at the window to her room.

"You're home..." Savannah said.

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL BREAK

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

Now sitting on her bed, Rose slowly turned her attention from Joel and Cherri, who were standing at the window to Savannah, who had a smile on her face as she looked around the room. "Not a bad place you've got here..." She said.

"It's home..." Rose replied.

"Yeah..." Savannah replied, her smile starting to fade. "...Well, you have what you want now. I guess we'll be on our way. Look, I'm really sorry that you had to be kidnapped..."

"It doesn't matter..." Rose replied.

"Good to hear..." Savannah replied as she knelt down, meeting Rose at eye level as she was in her dragon form. "...Look, Rose. Are you sure this is what you really want?"

"Yes..."

"Are you absolutely positive?" Savannah pestered, putting her claws on Rose's shoulders. "Rose, this is your chance to change your mind. Your parents were stolen from you. This is your chance to avenge them. You're a magical hero. That's who you are..."

"No..." Rose slowly shook her head. "...Not anymore. I don't even think I ever was. I've defected from the Dragon Council. Look at me. I don't have much time left. I told you that..."

Savannah said nothing for a brief moment. Then, as she slowly pulled her claws away from Rose's shoulders, she finally said: "What about the will?" Then, once she saw Rose's confused and quizzical look, she continued: "The will to live, Rose. Your purpose. Did you ever consider...that this is your purpose?"

"Savannah..." Rose said after a brief moment, watching as Savannah got to her feet. "...I...don't think so. My purpose...is my family-my son. My husband."

There was no mistaking the disappointed look on Savannah's face. Still, albeit with a saddened sigh, she nodded. "Okay..." She said. "...But...if you change your mind, you'll know where we'll be." The Bondi Blue-colored dragon then turned around and started to walk over to the window where Cherri and Joel were standing.

"Come on..." Savannah ordered as she flared her wings, flapping them and flying out of the window. Cherri quickly followed, flying out the window after Savannah, leaving only Joel in the room. Joel frowned as he watched Rose slowly lie down on her side on the bed. Slowly, Joel reached up and pulled his medallion off, removing the chain from around his neck. Quickly, he dropped it to the floor, where it hit with a clunking sound as he turned around and jumped out the window, flapping his wings and flying off into the night.

LINE BREAK

Meanwhile, back in the bathroom at Mermaid City, Gilda was at the sink in her human form, sniffling as she stared into the mirror, tears rolling down her cheeks. However, she was forced to whirl around when she heard a knocking against the closed door.

"Gilda..." Came the Russian accented voice of Arkadi. "...Are you okay in there?"

"I'm fine!" Gilda shot back, as loud as she could in the hopes that if she was loud, Arkadi would not be able to hear how choked up she sounded. "I'll be out in a few minutes!"

"Okay..." Came Arkadi's response.

As soon as she was sure that Arkadi was gone, Gilda turned her attention back to the sink and lowered her head as sobs began to rack her body.

LINE BREAK

Joel finally managed to catch back up with Cherri and Savannah. As he flew in-between the two of them, Cherri turned her head to the side. "Where were you?" She asked. Her tone wasn't suspicious, just annoyed.

"I was making sure that she's okay..." Joel quickly said.

"Why wouldn't she be okay?" Savannah asked. "She's an adult. She can take care of herself."

"You..." Joel began, but he stopped, continuing a few seconds later. "...You never know. I was...just making sure that she got settled back in..."

"Well, I guess that was considerate of you..." Savannah told him as they continued to fly through the air. The three dragons continued flying on in silence for about five minutes before they started to hover over a cemetery. Savannah looked down at the many markers, only to be surprised to see a figure digging at one of the graves.

"What is that person doing?" Savannah asked, getting the attention of both Joel and Cherri, who looked down at the person.

"Does it really matter?" Cherri asked. "We should get back to the rest of the team..."

"The person could need help..." Savannah said. "...It would be rude to not help her if she needs help..."

"Or she could be a criminal..." Joel pointed out.

"In which case I would never be able to forgive myself if she isn't stopped..." Savannah said as she stopped heading forward, Cherri and Joel still continuing on until they noticed that Savannah had stopped. Both of them turned around, just as Savannah dived down, heading toward the woman in the cemetery.

"Might as well go after her..." Joel shrugged before he followed Cherri, who quickly dived down after Savannah.

LINE BREAK

"Ma'am?" Savannah said as she landed behind the woman that was digging at one of the graves. Savannah stared at the back of the woman and could see that the woman wore bright ube-colored raggy garments, which consisted of a patchy shirt and a patchy skirt that went down to her ankles. The woman had long, curly grey hair. Upon hearing the sound of Savannah's voice, the woman dropped the shovel she was using and turned around, revealing a somewhat elderly woman who wore beads around her neck.

"Are you okay?" Savannah asked.

"But of course..." The woman smiled, speaking in a Chinese accent.

"Are you sure?" Savannah asked as Cherri and Joel landed right behind her, one on each side of her.

"Oh, yes..." The woman said innocently as she slowly turned back around and bent over, picking up the shovel again. "...I am quite fine..."

"What exactly are you doing?" Cherri asked. "Because I don't know if you should be doing it."

"Ma'am, are you doing something illegal?" Savannah asked.

There was a pause, almost as if the woman had frozen in place. "Ma'am?" Savannah asked again, but before she could continue, she got her answer. There was a bright light coming from underneath the woman's dress, and the next thing Savannah knew, a bright ube-colored tail with an orb at the tip.

The tip hit Savannah in the chest, making her grunt as she fell over and onto the ground. Cherri and Joel both watched with wide eyes as the old woman jumped into the air, absorbed by a bright light as she did. When the light faded, a large Bright ube-colored dragon spun around, still holding the shovel.

Cherri and Joel both reacted quickly as Savannah started to pick herself up into a sitting position. Joel sped up and reached the woman before Cherri could; Joel quickly opened his mouth to blow fire at the dragon, but the dragon only grinned as she swung the shovel at Joel, hitting him in the face before any fire could come out. Joel grunted as dropped to the ground after flying back a few inches, landing right beside where Savannah was sitting, unconscious.

"Joel!" Savannah shouted before she growled, looking up at the dragon, who was swinging her shovel at Cherri, making her back up to avoid getting hit. Flapping her wings, Savannah lifted off of the ground and started to fly up to Cherri and the bright ube-colored dragon that was attacking her.

LINE BREAK

Back in her room, Rose slowly rolled over onto her side, moaning as she put her cheek to the pillow. However, no matter how much she curled up on her bed, she could not get a feeling of warmth to her body. Groaning, she slowly sat up and turned her head to the side just as slowly, seeing that the cause was her open window.

Slowly, Rose backed up and climbed off of the bed. Once she was on her feet, she slowly turned around and slowly started to walk over to the window. Once Rose arrived at the window, she slowly rose her arms and hands up to the sill, but before she could start to bring it down, she realized that there was something on the floor.

"Huh?" Rose muttered as she slowly pulled her hands away from the sill. Looking down, she could see a medallion. Groaning, Rose slowly started to bend over and she slowly reached out to grab the medallion. Once she picked it up in her hand, Rose slowly started to straighten back up. Once she was back up, she glanced up from the medallion to the outside world from her window.

Rose stared at the window for a few moments before she finally sighed and slowly turned around, starting to slowly walk over to her closet. Once she finally reached it, she used her foot to slowly side the door open, revealing a row of hung up clothes. Slowly, Rose reached out and pulled out a hanger that held a white T-shirt. Slowly turning to the side, she threw it out, the T-shirt landing on her bed before she slowly turned back around and slowly reached back in, pulling out a pink pair of jeans.

LINE BREAK

Rose had set the medallion on the bed. Now fully dressed, Rose slowly stepped over to the bed and slowly reached down, grabbing the medallion. With the medallion in her hand, Rose turned around so that she was facing the window. Sighing, she shook her head slowly. "It's the right thing to do..." She told herself. "...You'll be back before morning..."

Then, taking a deep breath, Rose allowed the bright light to consume her. When the light faded, Rose was standing in her dragon form. She then slowly started to walk over to the window, and once she arrived at the window, she poked her head out of the window, taking in a deep breath of fresh air.

"Okay, Rose..." She said to herself. "...It's now or never..."

Taking yet another deep breath, Rose then took up all her strength and managed to jump out of the window. Once she had launched herself out of the window, Rose tried to slowly flap her wings. However, she soon found that her plan was a poor one, as she started to plummet to the cement below.

Her eyes wide with terror, Rose started to scream at the top of her lungs, all while trying to flap her wings slowly, trying to stop her fall by getting some air. As she continued to scream, she glanced down at the cement and found that it was getting closer and closer.

"Oh, come on..." Rose begged in a panicked tone as she continued to flap her wings. "...Please...come on..."

Still, as she continued to flap her wings, it did little to slow her fall, much less stop it completely. "Come on, come on..." Rose continued to beg, but it was quickly dawning on her that begging simply would not do. For a brief second, Rose eyes widened as she realized what she had to do.

Squeezing her eyes shut, Rose grunted as she forced her body to work harder. Although it sent an aching sensation through her body, she tried her best to flap harder, deciding that she'd rather be sore in that region of her body for a while than become a dragon splat on the sidewalk.

Finally, Rose's wings managed to collect enough air, and Rose halted, just as she was just a few mere inches from hitting the ground. Opening her eyes, Rose looked down on the ground, finding out how close she was to meeting her end. Releasing a nervous sigh, Rose slowly brought her claws up to her head and wiped the sweat off of her forehead.

"Okay, Rose..." She said to herself as she slowly pulled her arm away. "...Let's try this again..."

Grunting, Rose managed a powerful enough flap that managed to take her up into the air. Grunting some more, Rose managed to get her wings to flap powerfully enough to lift her into the air; as she flew on, with every flap of her wings, she grunted with effort.

LINE BREAK

Meanwhile, Cherri and Savannah were still facing the bright ube-colored dragon. Savannah's tail sliced right through the wood of the shovel just as the bright ube-colored dragon swung it at her. As the blade of the shovel dropped to the ground, the dragon's eyes widened.

However, the bright ube dragon decided to be creative with what she was given; grinning, she lunged as Savannah, pointing the wooden stick at her. However, before the bright ube dragon could run Savannah through, she grunted as Cherri slammed into her from the side, dropping the stick to the ground. Continuing to grunt, the bright ube dragon turned around to face Cherri, only to grunt as Cherri punched her right in the face.

The force sent the bright ube dragon flying back and down onto the ground on her back as Savannah joined Cherri's side in the air. Growling, the bright ube-colored dragon quickly sat up and then launched herself into the air, growling and flapping her wings as she extended her claws, aiming to impale.

Cherri and Savannah both gasped and with wide eyes, they jumped to the side while still in the air so that the bright ube dragon flew right passed where they had just been hovering. "Okay, how do you suppose we take her?" Cherri asked as she joined Savannah at her side again as they watched the bright ube-colored dragon come to a screeching halt before she turned around, her eyes burning with anger as she stared at the two dragons she was attacking.

"I don't know..." Savannah admitted. "...But I think we should be able to take her..."

The two then watched as the bright ube dragon started to fly toward them, her growl becoming easier to hear as she got closer. "Okay, I have an idea..." Savannah said quickly.

"You better step on it and tell-" Cherri started to say, but Savannah quickly cut her off.

"That's exactly it!" She told her friend and comrade. "We're going to step on her! Just...follow my lead..."

By this time, the bright ube dragon was just about to reach them. Quickly, Savannah spread her wings and flew into the air, Cherri quickly following her, and just as the bright ube dragon was right below them, both Savannah and Cherri came down on her, their feet making contact with her back. The bright ube dragon grunted as she was thrown down to the ground, where she hit belly first.

"Do you think she's down?" Cherri asked.

"There's only one way to find out..." Savannah said. "...Come with me..." Savannah then started to slow down the flapping of her wings; with Cherri following her, Savannah slowly started to hover down to where the bright ube-colored dragon was lying.

The two of them stared at the unmoving dragon for a few seconds before Savannah turned her head to the side, looking at Cherri. "Go check on Joel." She told her.

Cherri quickly nodded and flapped her wings, starting to fly over to where Joel was lying. Savannah watched Cherri for a few moments before she looked down at her defeated foe. However, Savannah could only gasp as she saw that the bright ube dragon had rolled over onto her back and was now grinning at her. Before Savannah could react, she grunted as the orb at the tip of the dragon's tail once again smacked her right in the chest, making her grunt as she flew back.

This gave the bright ube-colored dragon the opportunity to get to her feet, and she grinned as she watched Savannah several feet away, growling as she began to charge...

LINE BREAK

Rose could feel the sweat soaking her entire body as she flew through the air, panting the entire way. Clutching the medallion in her claws, Rose looked down at where she was going to catch her breath, however, the only thing that looking down did was allow her to see the local graveyard, where two dragons were fighting.

"Huh?" Rose asked in surprise. "What the...?"

Seeing the fighting below, Rose could only stare. Finally, she recognized one of the dragons and also noticed the two other dragons that were away from the fight. "Is that...Savannah?" Rose asked.

As the fight continued, Rose quickly decided that she needed to help her. Starting to slow down the speed of her wings, Rose slowly started to descend in height. "Okay, Rose..." Rose coached herself as she managed to aim her head down toward the ground so that she would arrive to help much sooner. "...You can do this..."

LINE BREAK

Savannah's eyes were wide as she backed up, avoiding the swipe of the claws from the bright ube dragon. The bright ube-colored dragon growled as she tried to lash out with her tail, but Savannah flapped her wings and flew higher and lifted above the tail. Savannah looked gown and opened her mouth, releasing a torrent of fire at the dragon.

At first, the bright ube-colored dragon's eyes widened, but then she also opened her mouth and blew a torrent of fire at her attacker. The two torrents met each other, stopping each other in their quest to do damage. The two torrents, controlled by their casters, would occasionally blow harder, trying to get their fire to overpower the other's.

Growling, the bright-ube dragon took a deep breath before she blew harder, her fire starting to consume Savannah's, moving toward her. As she continued to blow out her own fire, Savannah realized what her foe was doing and her eyes widened, sweat starting to roll down her forehead.

Slowly, the fire that she was blowing out started to fade and the bright ube-colored dragon's fire started to get closer to her. However, before the fire could hit Savannah, who was beginning to close her eyes in acceptance of her fate, a new torrent of fire hit the bright ube dragon's from above. In the blink of an eye, the bright ube dragon's fire faded into thin air, as did the new torrent.

Her eyes snapping open, Savannah followed the bright ube dragon's actions; both of them looked into the air in search of the new arrival. However, neither of them saw anyone. Completely confused, while the bright ube-colored dragon continued to stare up at the air, Savannah looked down at the bright ube-colored dragon, wondering if she should attack. However, she only ended up gasping as she saw the dragon form of Rose slowly lowering down in the air so that she was hovering right behind the bright ube-colored dragon.

"Rose..." Savannah breathed.

Apparently hearing Savannah, the bright ube-colored dragon looked down at Savannah with a scowl on her face. Then, she whirled around to face Rose. Rose was not surprised by this, but as soon as she saw her opponent, her eyes widened with uncertainty. "Do...Do I-?" She started, but then gasped. "Zhi Ya..."

With Rose surprised, the bright ube dragon acted quickly. With an evil grin, she swiped at Rose with her claws, and since Rose couldn't react in time, Zhi Ya's claws sliced into her belly. Rose roared in pain as he wings stopped flapping, Rose falling right out of the sky, where she landed on the ground on her back.

Zhi Ya looked down at Rose as she lied on her back, an evil grin slowly starting to spread onto her face. Chuckling evilly, Zhi Ya lowered herself to the ground so that she was right in front of Rose. Zhi Ya, as Rose stared up at her, brought up both of her claws and then aimed them down at Rose so she could impale her with them.

From up above, Savannah's eyes widened as she saw what was happening from below. "Rose..." She gasped. Thinking quickly, she looked down to see the broken shovel, or more precisely, the blade of the shovel. Quickly, Savannah dived down and snagged it before she flew over to where Zhi Ya was standing. Stopping abruptly, Savannah swung the blade just as Zhi Ya started to kneel down, aiming her claws to Rose's chest. Just as Zhi Ya's head was at the level of attack, the blade slammed into the back of her skull. Zhi Ya's eyes widened and she grunted before she fell forward, but before she could land on top of Rose, Savannah reached out and grabbed Zhi Ya's hair. Grunting softly, Savannah then pulled Zhi Ya back and then let go of her hair, making it so that Zhi Ya fell over onto her back.

Savannah smiled as she looked to the side and looked down at the unconscious dragon. However, her smile quickly faded as she turned her attention back to Rose. "Are you okay, Rose?" She asked as she looked at Rose, her eyes widening as she saw the slash marks on Rose's belly, red liquid forming at the marks; Rose hissed in pain as she slowly brought one of her clawed hands up and put it over her wound. "Here..." Savannah offered one of her hands.

Hearing Savannah's voice, Rose glanced up, but did nothing to respond to Savannah's offer. "Why did you come back?" Savannah asked as she waited patiently. "Did you change your mind?"

"No..." Rose answered, her voice filled with pain. "...You...You left this at my house..." As she said this, she slowly lifted up her other clawed hand, which was clenched into a fist. Slowly unclenching it, Rose showed Savannah the medallion.

"You came after us just to return that?" Savannah asked, a small smile on her face. Then, she chuckled. "Cherri or Joel must have accidentally dropped it when we dropped you off..."

As she said this, she turned her head to the side when she heard footsteps; she could see Cherri walking up to her, leaving Joel's side. "He's out cold still..." Cherri reported, stopping in front of Savannah so that she could see the medallion that was around her neck still. "...I don't think he's going to be waking up anytime soon..."

"Okay..." Savannah said as she turned her head back again so she could look at Rose. Leaning over, Savannah snatched the medallion from Rose with one clawed hand while grabbing Rose's scaly wrist with the other. Savannah then grunted with much effort as she stepped back, helping Rose get to her feet.

Several seconds later, Rose grunted as she finally managed to get to her feet. Still keeping one of her hands over the wound on her belly, Rose let go of Savannah's claws, allowing Savannah to turn around and address Cherri.

"Do you mind keeping this safe for Joel?" She asked as she handed Cherri the medallion.

"Sure." Cherri answered as she took it. "I take it we're going to continue on..."

"Yeah..." Savannah answered. "...I'm going to check on Rose first, though..."

Cherri nodded as Savannah turned back around and started to walk over to Rose. "Are you okay?" Savannah asked as she reached Rose.

"Yeah..." Rose answered as she slowly turned her head to the side and slowly looked down, looking at the unconscious form of Zhi Ya.

"You know her?" Savannah asked.

"Yeah..." Rose said. "...In Hong Kong about three years ago. I thought my sister-in-law destroyed her..."

"I guess she didn't..." Savannah shrugged.

"No..." Rose replied. "...After she harmed her, this one practically exploded. How could she survive that?" As she asked this question, she turned her head back around to look at Savannah.

"I don't know..." Savannah answered. "...But what I do know is that I'd like to see if you're okay are not. Can I see?"

Rose stared back at Savannah with a look of confusion on her face. "I'll be fine..." She said.

"Let me see, Rose..." Savannah repeated, her voice much more stern this time. "...You could bleed out before you manage to get home..."

"I'll be fine." Rose said again, more fierce this time. "I can make i-Hey!"

However, before she could finish her sentence, Savannah grabbed her scaly arm and quickly pulled it away, revealing red liquid all over her belly. "Oh, Rose..." Savannah's eyes widened as she stared at her belly. "...Rose..."

"I'm fine." Rose said, trying to pull her arm away. "When I get home, I'll use the first aid kit..."

"You're not going to make it home, Rose." Savannah told her as she let go of her arm, allowing Rose to slowly put it back over her wound. "...And even if you do, I don't think a first aid kit is going to help much. You need actual medical attention."

"Oh, then do you mind calling an ambulance?" Rose asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "I left my communication device at home. Do you have one?"

"I have a better idea..."Savannah told her.

LINE BREAK

Back at Mermaid City, Gilda sniffled again as she looked into the sink bowl. She was just lifting her head up when she heard a knock on the door. Growling, Gilda quickly whirled around and faced the door. "I told you before!" She yelled. "I'll be out in a minute, Arkadi!"

"It's me." The sound of Lexy's impatient voice called back as another pound hit the door.

Scoffing, Gilda started to walk over to the door. Unlocking the door, she turned the knob and pulled open the door to see Lexy in her dragon form. "What do you want?" Gilda asked her.

"I need you to get out..." Lexy seemed irritated, and Gilda soon found out why. "...I'm out of hand sanitizer..."

"I don't see how that's my-" Gilda started to say rudely, but before she could finish, Lexy grabbed her shoulder with her claws and pulled her out of the bathroom. Shocked, Gilda could only turn around and Lexy used her wings to launch herself into the air, flying into the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

Growling, Gilda realized that it was no use and instead turned around, where she could see Arkadi in his dragon form a few feet away facing her, smiling patiently. "There you are..." He said in his Russian accent as Gilda started to walk over to her. "...Feeling better?" He asked as soon as Gilda reached him.

"No..."

LINE BREAK

"Is he showing any sign of waking up soon?" Savannah asked as she walked over to where Cherri was kneeling, which was by Joel's side.

"No." Cherri answered, turning her head to the side.

"Well..." Savannah crossed her arms. "...Rose is bleeding badly. I need to get her some medical attention..."

"Where are you going to get that?" Cherri asked as she started to stand up.

"I think Coen should be able to help..." Savannah replied. "...The only problem is that Rose insists that she's fine..."

"Maybe she will be..."

"No..." Savannah shook her head. "...If she goes solo at her speed, she'll bleed to death before she manages to get to a hospital..."

"Do you think you're fast enough?"

"I'm sure..." Savannah answered. "...I'm worried about you, though. I don't want to leave you here..."

Cherri was silent for a few seconds before she answered. "Go on without us..." She said. "...I'll stay here with Joel until he wakes up. We can find our way back..."

Savannah quickly nodded in understanding before she turned around and started to walk over to where Rose was standing, still in dragon form and with her hand still over her wound.

"Alright, Rose..." Savannah said as she reached Rose. "...Human form. Now. I'm making it my responsibility to get you the medical assistance that you need..."

"I want to go home..." Rose told her. "...I only came here to give you back that stupid necklace..."

"And that was a very nice thing of you to do." Savannah said. "That's exactly why as soon as you're patched up, I will personally take you back home first thing in the morning. But first, you need to allow me to help you..."

Rose was silent for a moment as she took in Savannah's words. Finally, her eyes narrowed and she slowly nodded her head once. Then, her form faded in a bright light, Savannah smiling as she watched Rose revert to her human form.

From several feet away, Cherri, once again crouched at Joel's side, turned her head to the side just in time to see Savannah take off into the air with the human Rose on her back, flying away.

BLACKOUT; END EPISODE

**A/N: Please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season One)

Chapter/Episode 5: Changed

Back on Mermaid City, Angela, in her human form, found herself walking over to the elevator system as there came a ding. From behind the watery doors, she could make out one dragon form and one human form and as the doors slid open, Angela could see that the dragon was Savannah and the human was Rose, who had her hand to her stomach.

"Have you seen Coen?" Savannah asked as she stepped out of the elevator.

"No..." Angela said as Rose slowly started to follow Savannah asked. "...Why? Did something happen?"

"We ran into a little trouble..." Savannah explained as Rose slowly reached her side. "...On our way back, that is..."

"Then why is Rose still with you?"

"It's a long story..." Savannah replied. "...But what's important is that she's hurt. She needs some help..."

"Wait, wh...?" Angela started, but she was cut off by Rose.

"We were attacked..." Rose told her. "...Or at least, they were. I just got caught up in the middle of it..."

"Joel and Cherri are behind us..." Savannah told her. "...Joel was rendered unconscious. Cherri offered to stay behind with him. Rose needs medical assistance and we needed to hurry. So, have you seen Coen?"

"No..." Angela shook her head. "...I haven't..."

"Okay..." Savannah was apparently trying to keep her cool, but Angela could tell that she was beginning to lose her patience. "...Then how about you escort Rose to the medical center..." As she said this, she turned and started to walk by Angela. "...I'll go find Coen..."

"Okay." Angela agreed softly, turning her head to the side briefly to watch Savannah walk away before she turned her attention back to Rose, who was slowly walking over to her. Angela turned around as Rose reached her side and the two of them started to walk away from the watery elevator. "You holding up okay there, Rose?" Angela asked, turning her head to the side to look at Rose as she slowly walked beside her.

"Y...Yeah..." Rose managed.

"Do you mind being more specific than Savannah?"

"Joel left his necklace at my house..." Rose explained. "...Like a stupid person, I decided to seek him, Savannah and Cherri out. They were being attacked. So, I got attacked..."

"Sometimes, that's what you get for doing the right thing..." Angela replied as they reached a building. "...Right in here..." Angela said as she stepped forward and grabbed the knob of the door, stepping back as she pulled the door open. "...After you..."

Nodding, Rose slowly stepped into the room, where she found herself in darkness. "Sorry about that..." She could hear Angela's voice as the lights switched on. Rose then found herself in a room that was almost completely empty, except for a table in the middle of the room. "...I guess Coen isn't around..." Angela said as she walked up beside Rose, who was looking around the room. "...Well, why don't we get you all ready for when he does come? Follow me..."

Rose then slowly followed Angela as Angela started to walk over to the table. Stopping in front of the table, Angela put her hand on the table and patted it as she turned to the side and turned her head to the side, smiling at Rose.

Nodding once, Rose slowly made her way over to the table, and once she arrived at it, she slowly turned around so that her back was facing it. "Do you need help?" Angela asked.

"No, I can manage." Rose told her as she backed up even closer to the table and slowly lifted up one of her legs, trying to establish a place on the table's surface where she could sit. Once she did that, she grunted as she slowly managed to push herself up. Once she was done and was sitting on the table, she slowly turned her head to the side and smiled at Angela.

Angela looked like she was going to smile back, but before she could, the door to the room opened. Angela quickly whirled around as Savannah and Coen walked in, both of them in their dragon forms. "You found him..." Angela said.

"About time too..." Savannah said as Coen started to walk over to the table where Rose was sitting. "...How's Rose holding up?"

"She seems to be fine..." Angela said as Coen reached Rose. Coen knelt down onto his knees, putting his claws on Rose's hand, slowly trying to pull it away from her belly.

"Hey..." Rose reacted, not knowing what Coen was doing.

"He wants you to move your hand so he can see your wound..." Angela said.

"Then why doesn't he just tell me that?"

"He doesn't say much..." Angela told her. "...Sometimes Arkadi and Lista will try to get him to speak. It rarely works..."

"Hmm..." Rose's reply came out as this as she allowed the Carmine-colored dragon to pull her hand away from the wound, revealing her T-shirt, drenched with blood.

"Ooh, Rose..." Angela's face filled with worry. "...You need to get that patched up." As she said this, Coen stood back up and turned, walking away from the table, Rose looking down at her shirt. Slowly lifting up her head, Rose slowly turned her head to the side, where she saw Coen kneeling down near the wall. However, this did not last long. Before Rose knew it, Coen got to his feet again and turned around, holding a roll of bandages. Coen quickly walked back over to Rose and knelt down beside her, pulling out a length of the bandages.

"Rose, you're either going to have to take off your shirt or assume your dragon form..." Savannah told her.

Rose reacted almost with disgust to this, but she eventually sighed. "Okay..." She said, a bright light engulfing her body, and when it faded, she was in her dragon form.

"Thanks..." Came the rare vocal act from Coen as he ripped off the strip and started to put it to Rose's scaly belly.

"Shouldn't you try to stop the bleeding?" Rose asked, slowly looking down at the dragon that was patching her up.

"It looks like the bleeding has already stopped..." Angela pointed out as Coen unraveled another length of bandages and pressed them to Rose's belly, this one long enough to go around to her back.

LINE BREAK

Rose took a deep breath of fresh air as she stepped out of Coen's room. She immediately saw Angela waiting for her, still in her human form. Reverting to her human form, Rose slowly started to walk over to her. "Hey..." Rose said as she arrived in front of her.

"Hey..." Angela returned. "...Look, you're probably not going to be happy about this, but Savannah is insisting that you stay here for the night. She will personally take you home tomorrow morning after breakfast."

"Fine..." Rose agreed. "...So, where do I stay?"

"Well, since it's only for one night..." Angela replied. "...No one has really made any arrangements for you to get your own room..."

"Figures..." Rose grumbled. "...Look..." She then changed her attitude. "...I don't really have to bother you with my presence. If you have a communication device, I could just call my husband. He'd be down here in a flash. He could take me home..."

"I don't have one, Rose..." Angela replied. "...And at this time of night, I think it would be rude to bother your husband. Come. You can stay with me..." As she said this, she stepped to the side and started to walk away, making Rose slowly turn around. "...Come on..."

Rose seemed unsure of what to do for a few moments, but eventually she sighed and slowly started to follow Angela.

LINE BREAK

"Well, here we are..." Angela said as she opened the door to her room, allowing Rose to slowly walk inside. Rose had an unsurprised look on her face as she looked around the room, finding just what she expected: one bed and a table amidst a bare room.

"Here..." Angela said, bumping into Rose's shoulder as she walked passed her, walking over to the bed. Once Angela reached the bed, Angela pulled off the blanket that was placed over the covers and the sheets. She then turned around and set it down on the floor.

"That's where I sleep, huh?" Rose guessed, slowly crossing her arms.

"Oh, no..." A small blush came onto Angela's face as if she was appalled that someone would think she would be so rude. "...Oh, of course not! I would never do that. I know that He would not be pleased..." As she said this, she reached down and grabbed the cross around her neck. "...So, I'll sleep on the floor..."

"Oh..." Rose seemed taken aback by this. "...Well, that's very generous of you..."

"Think nothing of it." Angela smiled as she knelt down near the blanket. "Well, it's getting late. I think it would be best if we both got to bed. Around here, breakfast is always early..."

"Why?" Rose asked as she slowly started to walk toward the bed.

"Well, Savannah and Lono say that crime never rests..."

"Who's Lono?" Rose asked, stopping in her tracks and narrowing her eyes as she heard the new name.

"That's our chief, I guess you could call him..." Angela answered. "...See, Savannah's second-in-command. She does most of the field work and we all answer to her. Lono is the only one that Savannah answers to."

"Reminds me of my Huntsclan days..." Rose muttered as she continued on her way over to the bed. As she reached Angela, she managed to slowly walk around her before she reached the bed. Slowly turning around, Rose slowly lowered herself into a sitting position, watching as Angela lied down on her back, smiling as she stared up at Rose.

"You know..." Rose finally decided to bring up the subject of what had happened when she was injured. "...It was the funniest thing. I actually thought I recognized the dragon that was attacking Savannah, Cherri and Joel."

"You did?"

"It was not long after I became a dragon..." Rose said, looking down slowly at Angela. "...I went to Hong Kong with my sister-in-law after it was reported that the principal of the school that I went to down there had been killed..."

"Really?"

"Yeah..." Rose replied. "...We finally solved it. Turned out that my old friend was the culprit. She claimed that she was killing to hide the fact that she could never age because of a curse that had been placed on her."

"Really?" Angela gave her a quizzical look. "I mean, I know that it's possible, but really?"

"That's the thing." Rose told her. "It was the truth. A dragon had placed a spell on her, making it so she could never age. I thought my sister-in-law had destroyed her, but tonight...the dragon that was attacking them...looked exactly like her. Right down to the orb on her tail..."

As Rose finished saying this, Angela rose into a sitting position, and as she turned her head to the side, Rose could see that her eyes were wide. "Do you..." Rose started. "...Do you believe that it's possible to come back from the dead?"

"No, Rose." Angela replied. "That's impossible. That is...unless...dark forces are at work..."

"Wait, what?" Rose asked, watching as Angela got to her feet, turned and reached for the pillow. "What are you saying?" She asked, slowly turning her head to the side, just as Angela pulled out a book from underneath the pillow.

"In fact, I want to tell you something, Rose..." Angela said as she turned around and sat down next to Rose. "...And this is something very important. It's also quite personal. I want you to promise me that you won't tell anyone else on this team for the rest of your time here..."

Even though Angela was trying to tell her something important, Rose's gaze drifted away from her face, and it slowly turned to the book that was in her hands; she could see very clearly the two words that were printed on the cover: "Holy Bible".

"Rose?"

"Oh." Hearing Angela's voice again, Rose slowly lifted her head back up and slowly turned it to the side. "Huh? What did you say?"

"Rose, I need to tell you something very personal and private." Angela told her. "I need to tell you this...because I think it could possibly explain why you think that you just saw an enemy that you thought to be destroyed..."

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

"Okay..." Rose managed uncomfortably. "...I promise I won't tell anyone..."

"Alright, I'm trusting you." Angela quickly replied. "Frankly Rose, I think this might be the work of the Underworld-some kind of Hell."

"Are you serious?" Rose asked, a disbelieving look on her face.

"Yes, Rose."

"No..." Rose slowly started to shake her head. "...I seriously doubt it. I mean, I've encountered Davy Jones, but-"

"Davy Jones is child's play compared to what I'm talking about, Rose." Angela replied, a look of determination on her face. "Just...allow me to explain. It first started about eleven years ago, when I was thirteen..."

_FLASHBACK_

_Thirteen year old Angela sat in the back of her parents' car, her arms crossed and a scowl on her face. She wore a dark blue vest with school insignia in the side, and underneath the vest, she wore a white button-up blouse with a dark blue tie. She also wore a plaid skirt that went down to her knees, plus white socks that went almost up to her knees, leaving only a small sight of skin. Her prosthetic leg was nowhere to be seen; in its place was her normal leg._

_"Well, here we are, Angela..." Her father smiled as he pulled up in front of a large school area. Angela's frown only widened as she turned her head to the side and looked at the school. There was a large opened gate in the middle of two long buildings. Behind the gate, in the yard of the school, was a large cross towering down from above. "...Your new school..."_

_"Great..." Angela mumbled as she turned her attention back to her Dad. "...Thanks for sending me here. You know I'm not going to fit in..."_

_"You can always make friends..." Angela's father smiled as he turned his head to the side._

_"No, I mean I'm not going to fit in..." Angela retorted. "...We're not Catholic."_

_"You don't have to be Catholic to go to a Catholic school, Angela..." As he said this, Angela's father turned his head back to the wheel. "...Now, go and get out. You're wasting the battery of the car."_

_With a growl, Angela reached down and snatched her backpack before she blindly reached out and opened the door. Crawling out of the back seat of the car, Angela angrily swung her backpack over her shoulder and slammed the door. Turning around as her father drove away, Angela grumbled as she looked at the school._

_"I'm going to be the only sane person in a sea of religious, bible-thumping nut-jobs..." Angela muttered as she started to walk toward the gate. As soon as she passed through the gate, she sighed as she found herself in the schoolyard, where many other students were walking around and socializing. The girls wore the exact same uniform that Angela wore, while the boys wore slacks instead of a skirt and a jacket instead of a vest._

_Sighing, Angela shook her head. "This is going to be a long day..."_

_LINE BREAK_

_Angela entered her first classroom where she could see that all but one of the desks were filled. The only empty desk was in the very front of the room, right next to a girl with short red hair. Sighing, Angela started to make her way over to the desk and as she reached the desk, she could see that the red-headed girl wore a cross around her neck._

_"Oh great..." Angela rolled her eyes before she sat down at the desk. As she got settled into the chair, the red-headed girl turned her head to the side and looked at Angela. _

_"You're new here..." She pointed out._

_"Congratulations." Angela replied. "You just pointed out the obvious."_

_The red-headed girl looked like she was about to respond, but before she could, both she and Angela turned their attention to the front of the room when they heard the sound of a clearing throat. Angela had not noticed the desk in the corner of the room, or the old female teacher standing up from up it._

_"Now, class..." the teacher said as she walked to the front of the class, right in front of Angela. "...We have a new student today. Angela Masego, why don't you stand up and introduce yourself to the class?"_

_"I'd..." Angela managed to respond as she pressed her back against the back of her seat. "...Rather not..."_

_"Suits me..." The teacher shrugged. "...If that's the case, then we will not start class. Welcome to Bible Studies, Miss Masego..."_

_"Gee, thanks..." Angela murmured sarcastically as the teacher walked back over to her desk, reaching into a drawer after pulling it open and pulling out a worn down book. _

_"This will be your bible until you can get your own..." The teacher said as she walked back over to Angela's desk, setting it down on front of her desk. "...Now, class." She started to address the rest of the class. "I want you to open up your bibles to the last page of your readings for last night's homework. You read..." As she spoke, she opened up to the right page in her own bible. "...Aw, about Jesus returning from the dead after his crucifixion. Now, here's the question for you: Do you believe that there will be a second coming of Jesus Christ? If so, when?"_

_As the teacher finished asking the question, the red-headed girl's arm shot way up. However, the teacher seemed to ignore her and instead pointed at Angela as she turned her head to the side to look at the red-headed girl. "What do you think, Miss Masego?"_

_"Huh?" Hearing her name called, Angela turned her head back to look at the teacher. "Oh." Angela's face quickly darkened as she realized what was being asked of her. "No." She answered._

_"What?" The red-headed girl demanded, turning her head to the side as she pulled her arm down. "What do you mean 'no'?"_

_"There won't be a second coming." Angela responded. "That would be pretty difficult, seeing as God doesn't exist."_

_"H...How can you say that?" The red-headed girl seemed horrified. "Look at everything! Trees, animals, us! How do you explain our existence if there is no God?!"_

_"How about the scientific explanation?" Angela retorted. "The Big Bang? But since we're talking about all these good things in the world proving His existence, why don't we talk about all the bad things? People being struck down by terminal diseases, mental illnesses, children dying, children being abused, those cute little puppies that God creates getting run over by cars, war, discrimination? Do you still think that God exists after all those terrible things I just listed happening every day? Or, are you just saying that God is a malevolent-?"_

_However, before she could finish, the bell rang throughout the entire school, letting all the students know that it was time to move on to the next class. A small smile appearing on her face, Angela quickly got out of her seat and bent down, picking up her backpack before she started to walk toward the door, following a crowd of students from the room._

_Angela's smile only widened as she finally managed to get out of the classroom. However, before she could turn and start walking down the hall, she gasped in surprise as she felt someone grab her shoulder, and before she knew it, she was grunting as she was pushed against the wall._

_Recovering from the shock, Angela could see that her attacker was the red-headed girl. "What are you doing?" Angela demanded._

_"You think you're so smart..." The girl growled. "...But let me tell you something..." The girl poked her finger into Angela's shoulder. "...This life is His way of testing our faith..."_

_"Hey, Faith!" A new voice called out, and the red-headed girl quickly turned her head to the side. Wanting to know what was distracting the red-headed girl, Angela turned her head to the side, seeing a group of for other girls, all wearing the same uniform and all looking at them. "What are you doing?" The girl in the middle shouted as she put up her arm and waved. "Come on! We've got class!"_

_Angela could hear a growl coming from the red-headed girl, Faith. Turning her head back to normal to look at Angela again before she stepped back, releasing Angela from her grip. "Shape up and be a good student or stay away from me..." Faith growled as she turned and started to walk away, leaving Angela alone._

_"Bratty little snot..." Angela said to herself. Then, she turned around and started to walk down the opposite end of the hall._

_BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL _

_BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW_

_"Dad, I'm home!" Angela called as she closed the door to her house behind her. Not yet taking off her backpack from around her shoulders, Angela turned and walked into the next room, where she could see her smiling father sitting on the couch._

_"Hey, honey!" He said. "How was school? I bet your first day was-"_

_"Horrible." Angela finished as she walked over to the couch. Sliding off her backpack, she turned around and sat down next to her father, allowing him to put his arm around her shoulder._

_"It couldn't have been that bad..."_

_"It was..." Angela replied. "...I really don't fit in there. I already have an enemy."_

_"Well, just don't tick her off..." Mr. Masego replied, not sure what to tell his daughter. "...In fact, whoever this person is, I would just stay away from her."_

_"You don't have to tell me twice." Angela told her father, slowly leaning back so that her back was touching the back of the couch. "Even though I have four of my classes with her, I have no desire to ever speak to Faith St. Adela again."_

_LINE BREAK_

_The next morning, Angela sighed as she once again walked into the classroom of her Bible Studies class. Just like the morning before, as Angela looked around, she found that the entire classroom was full except for her seat._

_Sighing, Angela started to walk over to her desk. Just as she sat down next to Faith, the teacher got up from her desk and started to walk to the front of the class. "Good morning, class..." The teacher said. "...At this time, I'd like you all to take out your bibles. I assume you all read the pages for your homework."_

_At this moment, just as she was leaning over to grab her backpack, Angela froze and her eyes widened. "Miss Masego..." The teacher looked directly at her. "...Why don't you tell me about the passages that you read last night..."_

_"I...uh..." Angela managed nervously as she managed to unzip her backpack, blindly reaching in and managing to snag her bible. "...Well, I..." She continued to stammer as she slowly pulled out her bible. "...I..."_

_"Yes, we're waiting, Miss Cynic..." The teacher told her bluntly, her eyes narrowing. "...I expect an answer. Perhaps a few passages straight from the Good Book will enlighten you and put some faith into your heart."_

_Hearing this, Angela groaned to herself, rolling her eyes as Faith crossed her arms from beside her. Dropping the bible on her desk, Angela could only stare back at the teacher. "You didn't read it, did you?" The teacher asked._

_Angela took a deep breath, blowing it out like an exasperated sigh. "No." She finally answered. "You can't make me. What if I told you that it made me feel uncomfortable? Don't I have rights as a person?"_

_"You're a student here..." Faith told her, contempt evident in her tone. "...And if you hate the bible so much, then why did you take this class?"_

_"Like I really had a choice..." Angela grumbled, turning her head to the side._

_LINE BREAK_

_Outside in the schoolyard, Angela was watching as many of the students walked around the schoolyard during lunch from her spot on the grass. Reaching into her backpack, Angela pulled out her cell-phone. Quickly dialing the number of her father's phone, Angela put it to her ear, completely unaware that behind her, Faith and her friends were sitting behind her._

_"Hey, baby." The sound of her father's voice came into her ear._

_"Hey, Daddy..." Angela said. "...Look, I need to talk to you."_

_'What's wrong, baby?"_

_"Daddy, can you please come get me..." Angela's voice was now a hoarse and pathetic whisper. "...I've been having a really bad day. I told you I don't fit in here. Please...just come get me. Please...do whatever you can to get me out of the school." As she reached the end of her plea, her eyes were wide and her voice was like the squeak of a mouse._

_"Sorry, sweetie..." Came her father's reply. "...But I can't do that. I paid good money to get you into the school. I think this will be good for you."_

_"Daddy..."_

_"Oh, by the way, honey..." Her father cut her off. "...I'm really sorry to tell you this, but I won't be able to pick you up after school. I'm a little held up at the office. You can find your own way home this one time, right?"_

_"Daddy-"_

_"Good, I knew you could." Her father assumed that she was going to give him the answer that he wanted. "I love you. See you when I get home."_

_"But..." Angela tried, only to widen her eyes even more as she heard the line on the other end go dead. Sighing, she pulled her phone away from her ear._

_From behind her, Faith smiled as she listened to what was transpiring between Angela and her father. "Well, the little heathen wants out of this school..." As her smiled twisted into something more deranged, she reached over and reached into her backpack, pulling out her own cell-phone and starting to dial a number._

_"What are you doing?" One of her friends asked._

_"Well, she wants out of the school..." Faith said as she put her phone to her ear. "...I think I'll help her out. It'll do me a favor as well. Oh, hi Dad. Listen, I need you to do something for me..."_

_LINE BREAK_

_As the bell rang, Angela found herself standing right off of the campus on the sidewalk, trying to think of a good way to get home. From behind her, unbeknownst to Angela, Faith was quickly walking up to her side. "Hey." Faith said, faux kindness in her tone as she stopped beside Angela. "No ride home?"_

_"What does it look like?" Angela replied._

_"Look..." Faith began. "...What you said in Bible Studies today-that got me thinking. You're right. It is your right to not have the sense of a religion in your life. Maybe we can...start on a new path, get to know each other all over again. How about I help you get home?"_

_"I know my own way..."_

_"But there's a short-cut..." Faith replied. "...You'll get home sooner. Come on. I'll show you..." After saying this, Faith immediately walked off from Angela and started to turn and walk down the sidewalk. "Come on!" She called, not bothering to turn around._

_Angela stayed where she was for a few brief seconds; finally, she sighed and turned, starting to follow Faith._

_LINE BREAK_

_"Okay, we need to go through here..." Faith said as she and Angela neared a turn that led into a dark alley. "...Don't worry. It won't take too long..." Faith assured Angela as she turned and started to walk into the alley._

_However, Angela did not follow her; she instead froze and stood still, completely ignoring the fact that Faith was still walking through the alley. "Hey, what's taking you so long?" Faith called out. "Are you coming? What's a matter? Afraid that you'll be jumped by some masked man who'll leave you for dead?" As she asked this, Faith stopped in her tracks and turned around._

_From where she was standing, Angela could tell from the sarcastic tone of Faith's voice that she thought that she was being paranoid. Sighing, Angela realized that she was in fact being paranoid. Knowing this, Angela turned and walked into the alley, only to freeze and gasp as she stared at Faith. Standing right beside the girl was a large man dressed all in black. In his hand was a length of chains._

_Although surprised, Angela's survival instincts were able to kick in. "Dragon up!" She shouted, transforming into her Heliotrope-colored dragon form. Although the mysterious man and Faith were both surprised as they watched Angela fly into the air, they both recovered._

_The mysterious and masked man ran a couple inches ahead of Faith and lashed out with the chains, throwing them up at Angela. The chains managed to wrap around Angela's ankle as she flew away, and the mysterious man stepped back, tugging on the chains, snagging and trapping Angela._

_Angela grunted as she was forced to halt. Looking down, her eyes widened as she saw what had happened and grunting, she looked back up and flapped her wings, trying to fly away. However, as the mysterious man stepped back again, pulling at the chain with all his might, Angela's eyes widened as she felt a searing pain in her leg, actually hearing cracking sounds._

_Shouting in agony, Angela stopped struggling, giving the mysterious man the perfect opportunity to pull again. With a shout of fear, Angela flew back, whizzing over Faith's head before she landed on the hard ground with a thud._

_Smiling, Faith turned around to see Angela on her back, her leg that had been trapped in the chains bent in a twisted L-shape, obviously broken. Groaning, Angela's form faded, and in the blink of an eye, she was helplessly trapped in her human form._

_Simply smiling, Faith allowed the mysterious man to walk by her, reaching into his black pants, pulling out a sharp knife as he slowly advanced toward the frightened Angela._

_LINE BREAK_

_The moon was high in the sky, leaving Angela lying unconscious on her back in the middle of a cold night. The wind blew into the alley, hitting the unconscious girl, who had many slit wounds on her stomach and her leg, leaving her vest dampened and stained with her own blood. As the wind hit her, the unconscious girl moaned as consciousness came flooding back._

_As her teeth started to chatter, Angela moaned in pain as she slowly rolled over. Her eyes slowly opening, her pupils glanced around, taking in her surroundings. Moaning, she then slowly looked down to look at her injuries, her eyes widening with fear and a surprised and scared gasp escaping her lips. _

_"No..." Angela gasped. "...No...No..." Hissing in pain as she rolled over onto her stomach, she Picked herself up with her hands. "...I...I can't...can't die here..." Pushing herself into a sitting position on her knees, she gasped in pain as she felt the strain on her broken leg. Still, she tried to ignore it as she put her good foot up against the ground._

_Grunting, she pushed herself up onto her one foot. Now standing, Angela tried to keep her balance by hopping back and forth a few times, but in only a few short hops, this attempt failed, and Angela yelled as she fell back to the ground on her back._

_Hissing in pain, Angela rolled over onto her stomach again and lifted up her head, looking out into the street; her eyes widened with relief as she saw all of the cars speeding by. "Wait..." Angela whispered as she slowly extended her arm out, almost as if she was waiting for someone to grab it. "Help..." She begged in a soft voice, but then, her volume got much louder: "HELP!" She shouted at the top of her lungs. "PLEASE HELP ME!"_

_However, to her disappointment, her pleas only fell on speeding cars, none of them stopping even if any of the drivers heard her._

_Her spirits shattering, fear and despair started to fill Angela's eyes. "Help..." She managed. "...Don't let me die here..."_

_When no car stopped for her for several minutes, Angela moaned as she rolled over onto her back, looking up at the sky. "I don't want to die here..."_

_At that moment, Angela could see the moon in the sky, and she suddenly started to realize that the alley was getting brighter than it had been earlier. As the light of the moon touched her body, she gasped, almost in surprise. However, as the surprise faded, Angela's shocked expression faded as she started to realize just how warmer she felt than before. Her eyes widening, she continued to stare up into the sky._

_"You..." She managed, her eyes widening even more. "...You...You won't...let me die..." As soon as these words left her mouth, a small smile started to spread onto her face._

_FLASHBACK_

Rose's eyes were wide; wide with disgust, wide with worry and wide with wonder. Still, Angela continued. "It took me until morning to get out of that alley. Fortunately, that was just when kids were walking to school and their parents were heading to work. I was found easily and I got to the hospital. My dad was so tired when he got home from work that night that he had just collapsed on his bed and fallen asleep. He didn't even realize that I wasn't home. I lost my leg, but that was it. The stab wounds were surprisingly not that deep. The doctors transferred a little blood into me, but not much."

"Yeah..." Rose was a little disturbed by what she had just heard. There was no denying that. "...But...what about that Faith girl? Did justice ever catch up with her?"

"Well, she was surprised to see me in school three weeks later..." Angela smiled slightly. "...But no. See, Rose...I may have lost a leg, but that was just a small price to pay. I think that Faith was right and I was wrong. How do you explain my attack not being fatal?"

"Your attacker messed up."

"But how do you explain that?" Angela smiled proudly. "He does exist, Rose. That's how I survived. And Faith helped me see that. Maybe...that's why I refused to speak to the police when they asked me who attacked me."

"You let her get away with it?!" Rose asked, her voice filled with disgust.

"She helped me, Rose." Angela said. "She helped me become a better person. I can feel it inside of me. I was given a second chance..."

BLACKOUT; END

**A/N: Please review. **


	6. Chapter 6

Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season One)

Chapter/Episode 6: Dragon Attack

Cherri stared up at the moon as she continued to sit beside Joel's unconscious form. As she looked down from the moon, her eyes fell on the unconscious bright ube-colored dragon. Sighing, Cherri returned her attention back to Joel, just as she heard a pained moan coming from him. Her eyes wide, Cherri jumped to her feet as Joel's eyes slowly opened. As he looked up at his comrade, Joel moaned again. "Cherri?" He asked. "What happened?"

"What do you think?" Cherri replied. "You got hit over the head by that psycho!"

As Joel sat up, Cherri turned to the side and pointed at the unconscious dragons. "I think we should get out of here before she wakes up..."

"Fine by me..." Joel replied, slowly getting to his feet. Once he was on his feet, he groaned with pain as he put his claws to his head. "...Ughh, how long was I out?"

"Long enough..." Cherri told him as she started to flap her wings. "...Come on..." At that moment, Cherri lifted off of the ground and started to fly away. Joel looked up to look at her for a brief moment before he started to flap his wings, taking off after her.

As the two of the dragons flew away, the bright ube-colored dragon started to groan from where she was lying on the ground. Her eyes snapping open, the bright ube dragon pushed herself to her feet with an angry snarl. Whirling around, the dragon narrowed her eyes as she watched Cherri and Joel flying away.

"You two haven't seen the last of me..." The bright ube-colored dragon growled before her gaze softened. Then she looked down at her feet where she saw the broken wood for part of the shovel. Growling, the bright ube dragon walked back over to the area where she had been digging.

Dropping to her knees, the bright ube-colored dragon brought her clawed hands up to her face as she scowled. Then, she plowed them down into the dirt and started to dig.

Finally, after several minutes, the bright ube dragon's claws hit something hard, making a thudding noise. A smile crossing her face, the bright ube-colored dragon continued digging, finally coming across a large piece of wood-the lid of a coffin.

Pulling her claws out, the bright ube-colored dragon shook her hands, shaking all of the dirt off. Then, she got to her feet and looked down at the coffin. "This is it..." She said to herself.

The hole that the coffin was in was not that deep. Instead of the mandated six feet length, this hole was two feet at most. The bright ube-colored dragon then dropped back down to her knees and reached down into the hole and gave two knocks on the wood. Seconds later, the entire coffin started to shake violently. Grinning, the bright ube dragon slid down into the hole and straddled herself over the box as it shook. Bending down, she put one hand on each of the two sides of the lid to the shaking coffin. Giving a grunt, the bright ube dragon pulled, and within a few seconds, the wooden lid came right off. Stumbling back, the lid flew out of her claws and flew into the air.

Looking down, the bright ube dragon could see a female Orchid-colored dragon with long black hair that reached her tail. The dragon was lying on her back, blinking. Her scaly arms were pulled up over her chest, her wrists one on top of the other.

"Yao Niang..." The bright ube dragon declared. "...My daughter. After these long decades, I have freed you..."

"It's about time." Yao Niang growled as she pulled her arms away and sat up. "I hated it in there."

"Maybe you should have thought about that before you let them bury you alive..." the bright ube dragon growled back as she flared her wings and flew back up to the ground, where she landed on the ground as Yao Niang stood up and climbed out of the hole. "...I don't need you." The bright ube dragon continued as Yao Niang got to her feet. "I didn't have to rescue you. It would have saved me a lot of time to just abandon you."

Yao Niang was a dragon of considerable size. She looked to be of about fifteen years of age, but the glare on her face proved that she didn't have much love for the dragon that had brought her into the world. "Obviously..." She growled.

"Now hurry up..." The bright ube dragon told her daughter, turning around and flaring out her wings. "...There are dragons who saw me. They know that I was doing something here..."

"So you want to go after them?"

"As a matter of fact..." the bright ube-colored dragon grinned. "...I do. I have an idea..."

The bright ube-colored dragon then started to flap her wings, lifting off of the ground. Yao Niang briefly looked up and watched her mother flying away before she herself started to flap her wings, taking off into the air after her mother.

LINE BREAK

Meanwhile, Cherri and Joel had reached the harbor. Landing on the docks, both dragons reverted to their human form. "You have the communication device, right?" Joel asked. He wore a black T-shirt underneath an unzipped Peridot-colored jacket as well as jeans.

"Yes..." Cherri replied in an annoyed tone. She wore a Verdigris-colored tank-top as well as a pair of tight jeans. She reached into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out the communication device. "...Just give me a minute..." She told Joel as she pressed a button. Seconds later, the communication device omitted a holographic image of Savannah in her dragon form. "...We're back." Cherri told her.

"Is Joel okay?" Came Savannah's reply.

"He should be." Cherri replied. "He's shown no signs of any serious injury. You can send up that submarine thing now."

"Okay, just hang on for a few minutes." Savannah nodded. "It'll be right up." Then, her form faded, and Cherri sighed as she started to put the device back in her pocket.

Unbeknownst to either dragon, the bright ube-colored dragon and Yao Niang were flying right above them, looking down. "That's two of them..." The bright ube dragon declared, pointing down.

"What do we do, then?" Yao Niang asked. "I don't know what you're planning."

"You'll see what I'm planning..." The bright ube-colored dragon grinned. "...But no. We're not going to strike now. There were two more. We'll wait to find them...and then take all four of them..."

At that moment, the two dragons in the air, watched as something emerged out of the water. As the water ran down the sides of the object, the two dragons could see that it was a transparent bubble of water; although it was shaped like a bubble, it also looked somewhat like a submarine, especially when the top opened up, an escalator coming out and climbing to the dock, allowing the two on the dock to walk over to the stairs and get on before the escalator descended down, taking the two into the submarine.

The bright ube-colored dragon and her daughter watched as the lid closed on the transparent submarine. Then, seconds later, the submarine started to sink into the water. "Now what?" Yao Niang asked.

"We follow them..." Her mother replied, right before diving down, headed for the water. Swiftly, Yao Niang followed her, heading down for the water just as her mother hit the water, disappearing under the surface with a splash. Bracing herself, Yao Niang gave a mighty flap of her wings, making her speed go up as she hit the water, diving down into the depths.

Seeing her mother flapping her wings as she descended down after the transparent submarine. Following suit, Yao Niang's wings fought against the water as she flapped them repeatedly, following her mother.

Meanwhile, the submarine reached the gigantic bubble that kept water from flooding Mermaid City. The submarine turned to the side, making it so that the lid was touching the bubble wall to the city.

The lid opened up, allowing Joel and Cherri to walk out of the submarine and into the elevator shaft. Cherri then turned around as the lid to the submarine then closed, trapping the two of them in the shaft as the submarine pulled away.

"Okay, Joel..." Cherri said, turning her attention back to the control panel. "...Since your closer, can you press the button?" As she asked this, she pointed at the panel.

Saying nothing, Joel walked over to the panel and pressed the down button. As he stepped back over to Cherri's side, the shaft jerked violently before both dragons started to feel themselves going down.

After only about a minute, with both dragons not saying a word to one another and just staring at the wall, the elevator shaft came to a halt, Cherri and Joel hearing a "ding" sound as the doors slid open. Sighing with relief, both dragons walked out of the shaft.

As soon as Cherri and Joel stepped out, they were surprised to see Savannah walking up to them in her dragon form. She seemed out of breath, but relieved to see both of them. Both Joel and Cherri waited for Savannah to catch her breath. Once she finally did, Savannah smiled at them. "Glad to see you both back here."

"Glad to be back." Cherri returned.

"Are you okay, Joel?" Savannah asked, turning her attention to Joel. "It looked like you took a nasty hit. Do you want me to call Coen?"

"I'm fine." Joel told her, smiling in an assuring manner.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Joel nodded, his assuring smile now gone.

"Okay." Savannah finally gave in, but the look on her face told both Joel and Cherri that she wasn't buying it. "Well, if you insist, then it's late. We all need to get to bed. Me especially, since I'm taking Rose home after breakfast."

From outside the bubble, both the bright ube-colored dragon and Yao Niang looked inside, watching as the dragon Savannah and the human Joel and human Cherri walked off from the elevator, disappearing from sight.

Confused, Yao Niang turned her head to the side to look at her mother. Her mother turned her head to the side as well, giving her daughter a cruel smile. She then pointed up at the surface before she started to flap her wings, flying up to the surface. Quickly, Yao Niang started to follow her mother, flapping her wings against the water.

As she emerged from under the water, Yao Niang's first instinct was to open her mouth and inhale as much air as she could, but once she opened her mouth, she was rather surprised to find that she was not in desperate need of air. Lowering her gaze to look at her mother, she found that her mother was smiling. "I have a plan." She told her daughter. "And it involves our situation."

Yao Niang's eyes were wide at first, but once she managed to overcome the surprise, there was a small smile on her face. "How?" She asked. "What's the plan?"

"It involves our four friends..." The bright ube-colored dragon grinned. "...Other than that, all you need to know is to just follow my lead..."

LINE BREAK

The next morning, Rose moaned as her eyes slowly opened. Groaning, she slowly sat up and once she was in a sitting position, she slowly looked around the room, smacking her lips. However, her eyes soon widened and she gasped when she realized that she was in a room that she was not familiar with.

As quickly as she could, which was quite slow, Rose managed to get off of the bed and onto her feet. Her eyes wide and her lips parted, Rose once again slowly turned her head from side to side. "Wh...Where am I?"

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

Her eyes unnaturally wide, Rose took a deep breath to calm herself. "Okay, just think, Rose." She told herself. "Think back to last night. You were taken home...but then you-" However, before she could start to force herself to think back, the door to the room creaked as it opened.

Her eyes wide, Rose watched as a human Savannah stepped into the room. "Rose, I just wanted to tell you that breakfast is ready..." She said.

At that moment, it all came flooding back to Rose. She had come back and Angela had insisted that she sleep in her bed. As she remembered this, a small smile crossed Rose's face. "What's with the smile?" Savannah asked in a somewhat teasing tone, smiling herself. "That's the happiest I've ever seen you."

"It's nothing..." Rose replied, her smile slowly fading. "...And I'm not really that hungry. It's like I said last night. If you just have a communication device, I can call my husband. He'll come and pick me up."

"Come on, Rose..." Savannah frowned. "...Just humor me a little bit. I had an extra plate made for you."

"Savannah..."

"Besides..." Savannah smiled kindly as she put her arms behind her back. "...I already promised you that I would personally take you home. I don't plan on going back on my promise."

"You're a stubborn person, aren't you?" Rose replied.

This only made Savannah's smile widen. "How do you think that a twenty-two year old college student became second-in-command to an army of dragons?"

"Good point." Rose relented.

LINE BREAK

"Here we are." Savannah said as she pushed open a door, stepping into a large room where there was a long table. As Rose slowly stepped into the room, she could see that sitting on one side of the table was Angela, who was sitting closely to the human Lista, both of them looking down at the book that was in Angela's hands. Next to Lista sat the human Joel and there was a spot empty right next to Angela on the opposite side of Lista. On the other side of the table sat Cherri, then Arkadi, then Gilda and finally Maverick, all in their human forms. Finally, there were two more empty spots next to Maverick, as well as an empty seat at the end of the table.

"You can sit wherever you want..." Savannah told her. "...I'll get the food."

Rose nodded before she slowly started to walk over to the table. Eventually, she reached the empty spot next to Angela. As Rose slowly sat down next to her, Angela heard the creaking of the bench and closed her book, which Rose could see was her bible as she turned her head to the side once she was sitting down. "Hey..." She said.

With a smile on her face, Angela turned her head to the side so she could look at Rose. "How was my bed?" She asked. "Comfy?"

"Yeah." Rose replied. "Thanks for letting me sleep in your bed for the night."

"No problem." Angela told her.

"Look..." Rose quickly changed the subject. "...About what you told me last night. What exactly was your point about-"

However, before she could finish, Rose froze as she felt the sensation of breathing hitting her neck and within seconds, she could actually hear the sound of the breathing. And then: "You're sitting in my spot, you jerk!"

Gasping, Rose slowly turned her head to the side, now able to see Lexy in her human form. She wore a Sapphire-colored T-shirt and Sapphire pajama bottoms. She had a look of extreme annoyance on her tone.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Rose said with all sincerity. "I can...I can move." As she said this, Rose turned her head back to the table and started to slowly stand up. However, she once again froze when she heard the sound of Lexy's voice: "No!"

"What's the matter with you?" Rose asked, slowly sitting back down and slowly turning her head to the side. "Do you want me to move or not?"

"No." Lexy said. "You've already caused irreversible damage. Just...stay where you are."

"Whoa, what's going on?" At that moment, Rose was surprised to hear the sound of Savannah's voice; within seconds, both Savannah and Coen, in his human form, stepped up, each carrying four trays of food. In his human form, Coen wore a Carmine-colored button-up shirt and black jeans. Savannah's tail was also sticking out, carrying a fifth tray of food. "Lexy, what's going on?"

Lexy quickly turned around to look at Savannah, showing Savannah her angry look. "She sat in my seat!" Lexy exclaimed. "She just sat in my seat!"

"Okay, okay..." Savannah's tone was calm. "...Just calm down, Lexy. It's okay. You can sit at Lono's. He won't be joining us. How does that sound?"

Lexy was silent for a moment, almost like she was considering Savannah's offer. However, Lexy proved otherwise by reaching out and snatching one of the trays from Savannah. "Hmph!" She pouted. "I'll just sit by myself on the floor!" Lexy then turned around, making probably the most dramatic turn-around that Rose had ever seen, and then stomped over to the wall.

"Go ahead..." Savannah muttered under her breath. However, her annoyed look quickly faded and was replaced with a smile as she took two steps and lifted her tail over Rose's head before bringing it down in front of Rose's face, setting the tray down. As Rose looked down, she could see that there was a pancake on her plate, and the pancake had a smiling face on it.

"Sorry, I just had to put that on..." Savannah said with a grin as she stood beside Rose, looking down at the plate. "...I think you should smile more." As she said this, Coen moved to the other side of the table and started to set down the trays. "Just some friendly advice." Savannah said as she stepped back over to Angela and set down a tray of food for her.

LINE BREAK

Outside Mermaid City, both the bright ube-colored dragon and her daughter was underwater, staring into the city. The bright ube-colored dragon turned to face her daughter, pointing to the surface. Then, she flapped her wings and started to swim up to the surface. Quickly, Yao Niang started to follow suit; with a mighty flap, Yao Niang followed her mother up.

As she reached the surface, Yao Niang quickly turned her head to the side only to gasp with surprise as she saw her mother landing on the dock, soaking wet, from the air. "Come, daughter!" She shouted at her. "You must hurry!"

Quickly complying, Yao Niang started to swim over to the dock.

LINE BREAK

The surface of the water started to bubble, then, seconds later, the bubble-shaped submarine emerged from the water, right in front of the soaking Yao Niang and her equally soaked mother. The lid opened up and the escalator rose up, reaching the end of the dock.

"Come, daughter..." The bright ube dragon said as she started to walk over to the escalator. Yao Niang stayed where she was until her mother stepped down on the escalator, lowering her down into the submarine. Then, she quickly started to walk over to the escalator.

LINE BREAK

As the lid on the top closed above them, Yao Niang turned her head to the side to look at her grinning mother, who was staring at the armor-uniformed merman who was stationed by the controls. "So..." He said. "...What is your business at the city?"

"We have reason to believe that a friend of ours is staying at your city." The bright ube-colored dragon answered quickly. "We just want to make sure. You can be sure that we do not plan to stay very long."

"Well, just as long as you don't cause any harm, you can stay as long as you desire." The merman replied, just as the moving submarine came to a jolting halt, making Yao Niang gasp as she stumbled forward, even though her grinning mother managed to keep her balance. "Here we are." The merman told them.

LINE BREAK

The elevator shaft dinged as the doors slid open, Yao Niang and her mother arriving at Mermaid City. As they looked as the area in front of them, an evil grin crossed the face of the bright ube-colored dragon.

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

Back at the dining hall, everyone was eating in silence, until Maverick turned her head to the side and spoke to Savannah, who was just putting her fork in her mouth. "Why isn't Lono eating with us?" He asked.

"Is he sick?" Lista asked.

"No." Savannah answered as she pulled the fork out of her mouth and set it back down on his plate. "He just told me that he wasn't up to joining us this morning. I honestly don't know what it means."

"Hmm..." This seemed to be enough for Maverick, who silently returned to his food.

Rose, on the other hand, had not touched the food. Instead, she slowly turned her head to the side and looked at Angela, who was setting down her fork. "Hey, Angela?"

"Yeah, Rose?" Angela replied, turning her head to the side.

"About what you told me last night..." Rose began. "...It really sounded like you were going to imply something about what I saw last night..."

"Oh." At that moment, Angela's eyes widened, and she gave a sheepish smile. "You're absolutely right, Rose. I'm glad that you reminded me. I guess after I finished telling you about what happened to me, I thought I was done. I forgot that I had a reason to tell you about my experience."

"Well, you can always tell me now."

"That I plan to." Angela smiled. "Okay, so you said that you thought you had met the dragon that attacked you before, right?"

"Yeah."

"But you thought that the dragon had been slain?"

"I don't think, I know." Rose said. "She...combusted...after my sister-in-law ran her through with her tail. There's no way that anyone can survive something like that."

"Aha!" Angela's reaction caught Rose off guard, and Rose leaned back with a surprised look on her face. Still, Angela continued: "What if I said that there is a way that she could have survived that?"

"How?"

"This is where my story plays an important part." Angela continued. "On that night, I gained faith of a paradise and of a God. However, I see no proof of a Hell or something like that."

"Maybe because there isn't..." Rose guessed.

"But if there's a Heaven, shouldn't there be a Hell?" Angela replied. "That's why I joined this team, Rose. I saw this as the perfect opportunity to see firsthand if there are any otherworldly supernatural occurrences. In other words, Hell."

"So Hell just gave her back her life?" Rose asked.

"No." Angela replied. "I'm saying that there is a possibility that this dragon could be a Hellish messenger. Maybe...this dragon...sold her soul..."

LINE BREAK

The bright ube-colored dragon and Yao Niang quietly walked through the area, finally coming across several buildings. "Now that we're in..." Yao Niang asked. "...What do we do now?" As she asked this, she turned her head to the side, looking at her mother. "How do we find them?"

"Easy, my daughter..." The bright ube-colored dragon smiled evilly. "...We just have to create a little...Hell on Earth..."

Then, the bright ube dragon looked up at the ceiling of the bubble and opened her mouth, breathing out a large torrent of fire, heading right toward the ceiling of the bubble...

LINE BREAK

"Sold her soul?" Rose asked, skeptical. "You think that's possible?"

"Anything is possible, Rose." Angela told her. However, as she said this, her gaze fell away from Rose and she glanced up. Noticing this, Rose slowly turned around in her seat where she saw Savannah, still in her human form, standing by her.

"I see you're not eating, Rose." Savannah said. "I guess you really aren't hungry..."

"Yeah." Rose answered, slowly starting to rise up from where she was sitting. Once she was completely standing, she gave Savannah a small smile. "Sorry about that. I told you I wasn't very hungry."

Savannah nodded. "Okay. I understand." She said. "You just want to be taken home."

"Kind of."

Once again, Savannah nodded, only this time, it was more of a disappointed nod. "Well, I've got to keep my promises. Well, come one..." Savannah slowly turned around and started to walk toward the exit.

Rose slowly started to follow, only to stop and gasp as she felt a hand on her shoulder, Slowly turning her head to the side, she saw Angela stepping up beside her. "What are you doing/" Rose asked.

"What?" Angela faked a hurt expression. "I have no right to walk you out and say goodbye?"

"No, you do." Rose replied, her voice expressing the belief that she may have offended the dragon.

At that moment, Angela's face brightened again, complete with a smile, and she chuckled. "Rose..." She said, patting Rose's shoulder. "...I was just kidding. I wasn't serious. I have no problem if you'd prefer it if I stayed here. But if you don't have a problem, do you mind?"

"No." Rose assured her, turning her head back to the door slowly. "You can. I'd...I'd like you to."

Angela's smile widened as Rose said this and she once again patted Rose's shoulder. Rose slowly started to walk out of the room, closely followed by Angela, who was going slow to keep Rose company. Finally, they reached the door and passed through it, stepping out of the dining room. However, they were surprised to see that Savannah was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, where'd she go?" Rose asked as Angela started to look around.

"I don't know." Angela answered. "I don't see-"

However, at that moment, Angela was cut off as both women heard the sound of a loud scream. Both looked up in the direction of the scream, and they could see a flash of Bondi Blue falling to the ground. Both woman slowly lowered their heads as they followed the falling flash, and both cringed as they saw the flash hit the ground with a thud, a grunt coming from what hit the ground: a dragon Savannah.

Groaning, Savannah rolled over onto her belly and looked up, staring at Angela and Rose. However, when she opened her mouth, she was not addressing either of them. "Cherri!" She shouted. "Joel! Lexy! Lista! Coen! Gilda! Maverick! Arkadi!"

As Savannah called out for her team, Rose and Angela both looked back into the air, where they could see two dragons flying down in flashes of bright ube and Orchid. Quickly, they landed on the ground right behind Savannah, allowing Rose and Angela to see them.

As Rose stared at the two dragons, her eyes widened and she gasped as she eyed the grinning bright ube-colored dragon. "It's her..." Rose breathed.

"What?" Angela asked, turning her head to the side as the bright ube-colored dragon walked over to Savannah, who rolled back over onto her back, just in time to see the bright ube-colored dragon lift her foot up, bringing it down on her chest, trapping her.

"It's her..." Rose said. "...It's her..." She repeated as she slowly lifted up her hand and pointed at the dragon. "...It's Zhi Ya!" As she said this, the volume of her voice rose, making the bright ube-colored dragon, Zhi Ya, with her daughter by her side, look up from Savannah and stare at Rose with a look of surprise on her face.

"How do you know me?" She snarled. "I've never met you in-" However, Zhi Ya quickly stopped herself as she stared at Rose, who was glaring back at her. "Wait..." Zhi Ya's eyes widened. "...Maybe I-Three years ago, in Hong Kong-There were two dragons-"

Growling, Rose's fists clenched into tight fists as she shouted at the dragon. "You cursed my friend!"

"SAVANNAH!" However, at that moment, Rose could hear the sound of Cherri's voice, followed by several sets of footsteps. Turning her head in the other direction slowly, she could see Cherri at her side, while Joel, Coen, Lexy, Gilda, Arkadi, Lista and Maverick all lining up in that order beside Cherri. "Savannah, are you okay?" Cherri asked.

"Never better..." Savannah answered from on the ground.

"Let her go!" Cherri demanded. "Or else!"

"Or else what?" Yao Niang demanded.

In that moment, there were several bright flashes of light surrounding Rose, who slowly turned her head in both directions as Angela, Cherri, Joel, Coen, Lexy, Gilda, Arkadi, Lista and Maverick all transformed into their dragon forms.

"You're about to find out." Lista said with a grin on her face.

Then, before Rose even knew what had happened, Angela, Cherri, Joel, Coen, Lexy, Gilda, Arkadi, Lista and Maverick all flapped their wings and lunged for the two evil dragons that had attacked Savannah. Zhi Ya grunted as Cherri slammed into her, knocking her back, releasing Savannah, who sat up as Cherri hit the ground, landing on Zhi Ya, who hit hard on the ground.

Lexy on the other hand landed right in front of Yao Niang, with Joel and Gilda at her side. Growling, Yao Niang charged for the three dragons, and as she reached Lexy, she lashed out with her tail. However, Lexy managed to jump back, and as her feet touched the ground once again, she pointed her tail down to the ground, tapping it against it.

"Do you mind not being so neurotic?" Joel demanded, making Lexy turn her head to the side to look at him. "We're in the middle of a fight."

"Shut up!" Lexy barked, looking back at Yao Niang just in time to see Gilda flying up to her. Yao Niang acted quickly and flew into the air, lashing out with her tail, hitting Gilda in the face. Gilda grunted as she flew back, hitting the ground with a thud.

"Joel, check on Gilda!" Lexy said, turning her head to the side to look at Joel. "I've got this!"

"But-" Joel started, but Lexy didn't listen. Instead, Lexy flapped her wings and took off into the air, flying over to Yao Niang. Groaning, Joel slowly started to walk over to Gilda. "This isn't my job..." As he reached Gilda's side and knelt down to his knees, he added. "...This is Coen's..." However, as he looked down, he gasped as he saw that Gilda's eyes were open, and she was scowling at him.

"Good..." she said. "...Because I'm fine." Holding up her clawed hand for him to take, she said: "Get up off your tail and help me up."

Meanwhile, Yao Niang grunted as Lexy slammed into her, knocking her back onto her back. As she grunted, Lexy got back to her feet and once again tapped her tail on the ground. Growling, Yao Niang opened her mouth and blew out a torrent of fire. Lexy's eyes widened and she quickly flew into the air, avoiding the fire.

As Yao Niang got to her feet, she quickly whirled around to see Lexy landing on the ground, once again tapping her tail against the ground. Grinning, Yao Niang lashed out with her tail, hitting Lexy in the chest, making her grunt and fly back before she landed on her back. Grinning victoriously, Yao Niang flew into the air; still looking down on her defeated enemy, Yao Niang prepared to dive down onto her and attack, only to freeze as she heard the sound of flapping wings.

The next thing she knew, right in front of her, Gilda, Joel, Coen and Lista flew up in front of her. Her eyes wide, Yao Niang turned around, only to see Maverick and Arkadi behind her. "Hmm..." Grinning slyly, Yao Niang started to spin around quickly blowing fire out of her mouth. Since she was spinning, the fire started to surround her in a twister of fire.

Shocked, the dragons all backed up to stay safe from the flames, just as Yao Niang flew out of the end of the twister. Now high above them, Yao Niang grinned as she looked down on Maverick and Arcadi; opening her mouth, Yao Niang shot out two fireballs, one at Maverick and one at Arkadi. The fireballs hit both of her targets on the head, and Yao Niang grinned as she turned around, looking down and blowing out four more fireballs, one flying down to Gilda, one to Joel, one to Coen, and one to Lista.

LINE BREAK

Zhi Ya growled as she lashed out with her claws, but Cherri managed to step back and dodge the claws. Grinning, Zhi Ya lashed out with her tail, which met its mark with Cherri's chest. The Verdigris dragon grunted and was thrown off of her feet before she hit the ground with a thud.

Her grin only widening, Zhi Ya turned around just in time to see Gilda, Joel, Coen, Lista, Maverick and Arkadi drop to the ground as Yao Niang landed on her feet.

"Very good, my daughter!" Zhi Ya shouted. "Now, come over here and take these two." She pointed at the unmoving Cherri and the sitting Savannah. "I'll get the human and the fourth one..." She cast a glance at Rose, who was standing where she had been left, almost as if frozen in place.

"No, Cherri!" Savannah whispered as she stared at the unmoving Verdigris dragon. She started to try and get to her feet, only to stop when she felt claws on her shoulder. Turning her head to the side and looking up, Savannah could see Angela staring down at her with a smile on her face.

"It's okay, Savannah." She said. "I'm not going to let them take you or anyone else." Then, her frown faded and she looked up at Zhi. "Hey, Zhi Ya? Is that your name?"

Hearing her name, Zhi Ya froze and turned back around to look at her. "I'm not going to let you take my friends." Angela said softly. "And if you try to take them, I'm going to give you a fight you won't soon forget."

"You mean like your friends?" Zhi Ya grinned cruelly.

"Why don't we just try to avoid the fight altogether?" Angela suggested, taking her claws off Savannah's shoulder and taking a few steps closer to the evil dragon. "And why don't you take me instead?"

"HA!" Zhi Ya scoffed as Angela started to walk over to her. "You?!" However, as Angela got closer, Zhi Ya got a closer look of the dragon, even noticing the cross around Angela's neck. As she saw the cross, Zhi Ya's eyes widened. "Hmm..." As Angela stopped right in front of the dragon, she was surprised to see that she was thinking about it.

Seconds later, a smile crossed Zhi Ya's face. "You know what?" She said. "I like your offer. I'll take it..."

"What?" Yao Niang, who was walking over to her mother, asked. "Mother, you're not serious! Four would be more beneficial to us than just one!"

"Not if it's this one..." Zhi Ya grinned as she turned around to face her daughter, reaching over to the side and grabbing onto Angela's cross. "...No. I think this will suit us just fine..."

"Angela, don't do this..." Savannah begged as she got to her feet. "...You don't know what you're doing!"

"Of course I do..." Angela said, smiling as she turned her head to the side. "...Everything's going to be okay..."

BLACKOUT; END EPISODE

**A/N: Please review.**


	7. Chapter 7

Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season One)

Chapter/Episode 7: Unlikely Saviors

The sound of a "ding" came from the elevator shaft as the doors slid open. Zhi Ya and Yao Niang were standing on opposite sides of the still dragon Angela as all three of them walked into the shaft, meeting the same merman that had taken Zhi Ya and her daughter down to Mermaid City.

"Why, hello Angela." The merman smiled at Angela as the doors slid shut.

"Hello." Angela smiled back. "Nice day, isn't it?"

"It sure is." The merman replied as the elevator started to move up. "Do you...know these two dragons?"

When Angela said nothing and just stood with her mouth slightly open, Zhi Ya stepped in and spoke: "Yes, we know each other." She said. "Angela was the one that my daughter and I were looking for. Her mother was a friend of mine."

"Hmm..." The merman seemed to buy this, which turned out not to matter, for the elevator shaft came to an abrupt halt, once again making Yao Niang stumble forward in surprise. "...Well, here we are..." The merman said.

LINE BREAK

The transparent submarine emerged from the water and met up with the dock. The lid opened up and the escalator started to come up, carrying Zhi Ya on the first step, Angela on the second and Yao Niang on the third. Once the first step reached the dock, Zhi Ya stepped onto the dock, followed by Angela and then Yao Niang.

"You're not...planning anything, are you?" Zhi Ya asked as she turned to face Angela. "You're not trying to trick us, are you?"

"Of course not." Angela answered respectfully. "I have no intention of doing that. I made a deal with you. I plan to keep it."

"Good." Zhi Ya told her, smiling cruelly. "Unfortunately, I don't think I can trust you. What about you, daughter?"

In that second of time, Angela gasped in pain as Yao Niang's tail slammed into the back of her head. "No." Yao Niang answered as Angela dropped to her knees before falling over onto her belly, unconscious.

"Now what?" Yao Niang asked, looking down at Angela's unconscious form.

"Get her into her human form..." Zhi Ya answered darkly.

LINE BREAK

Moaning, Cherri slowly opened her eyes to find that Savannah was in her human form, staring down on her with wide and fearful eyes. "Cherri?" She asked, relief replacing some of the fear in her eyes. "Cherri, are you okay?"

Moaning again, Cherri brought her claws up and placed them down on her chest. "Why does my chest hurt?" She asked.

"Probably because you got smacked there." Savannah answered.

"Savannah..." The sound of Joel's voice made Savannah turn her head to the side so she could see Joel, in his dragon form, walking up to her with one of his clawed hands to his head. "...Where's Angela?"

"I don't know..." Savannah answered, getting to her feet as Cherri sat up into a sitting position. "...But we should find her." Savannah finished as she stepped to the side, looking at her team that was behind Joel. All of them were on their feet now, and many of them were moaning with pain; all of them had their hands over their heads. "Arkadi!" Savannah called, making Arkadi, who was standing next to Gilda, lower his clawed hand and look at Savannah. "Go check on Rose!"

Arkadi nodded in compliance as he turned and walked by the now scowling Gilda and walked over to where Rose was now standing, not having moved an inch. "Rose?" Arkadi asked in his heavy accent. "Rose, are you okay?"

Even as Arkadi stopped right in front of her, Rose said nothing. All she did was blink once. "Rose, why are you acting so weird?" Arkadi asked, reaching out to touch her shoulder. However, as his claws finally rested on her shoulder, Arkadi gasped as his hand went through her shoulder. Within the blink of an eye, Rose vanished into thin air. His eyes wide, Arkadi turned his head to the side and shouted: "Savannah!"

"What?" Savannah asked. She was standing in-between Cherri and Joel. As she heard Arkadi's call, she started to walk over to him, Joel and Cherri following her closely. "What is it, Arkadi?" She asked as she stopped in front of him, only to realize that Rose was gone.

"Wh...Where did she go?" Joel asked.

"Doppelganger..." Arkadi answered, turning around and staring into Savannah's shocked face.

"What do we do?" Cherri asked.

Savannah was silent for a few seconds; she lowered her head and stared at the ground as if in thought. However, her hands clenched into tight fists and she looked up, her eyes burning with frustration. "Damn. Now we have two dragons to look for..."

LINE BREAK

Back on the dock, Zhi Ya was sitting with her legs crossed, trying to relax as she watched Angela's dragon form fade away as her daughter backed up. "I got her to revert, mother." She said.

"It's about time..." Zhi Ya said as she uncrossed her legs and pushed herself up into a standing position.

Unbeknownst to either of the villains, Rose, in dragon form, emerged from the water, opening her mouth gasping for breath. As she inhaled deeply and exhaled repeatedly, she looked at the dock, where she could see Zhi Ya standing. "Get her onto your back." She heard her say. Rose then watched as Zhi Ya turned around and started to flap her wings, taking off into the air. Seconds later, Yao Niang stood up, coming into full view for Rose; Angela was in her human and was unconscious, placed upon her back. Yao Niang then flapped her wings and took off after her mother.

Her breath now caught, Rose slowly started to flap her wings from under the water. "Come on..." Rose silently begged, looking into the air at the escaping villains as her wings started to pick up power. Finally, Rose slowly lifted out of the water and flew into the air slowly and awkwardly, tipping to the side as she tried to fly. "Wh...Whoa..." Rose managed as she tried to balance herself as she continued to slowly fly after the villains.

Ahead of Rose, completely oblivious to being followed, Zhi Ya and her daughter were flying side by side. "What now, mother?" Yao Niang asked, turning her head to the side. "Where are we going to take her?"

"We have to find a hideout, my daughter." Zhi Ya replied. "Keep an eye out. We don't want to miss any golden opportunities."

"Yes, mother." Yao Niang answered as she looked down at the ground. "I don't see any yet."

"I should hope not." Zhi Ya replied. "We don't want one that is too close to that underwater city. If her friends decide to come looking for us, it could be easier for them."

"I understand, mot-" Yao Niang started, but her mother once again cut her off, turning her head to the side so she could look at her daughter.

"But we also don't want to look for so long that our guest of honor wakes up and decides to finally put up a fight." She told her. "So, I want to you to still keep an eye out."

"Yes, mother..."

LINE BREAK

Savannah was sitting at the table in the dining hall in her human form. Cherri was sitting next to her, also in her human form, watching as Savannah took a deep breath, her face hidden in her hands. As she finished exhaling, Savannah lifted her head up from her hands, which she set down on the table.

"Don't worry..." Cherri told to tell her. "...Angela knew what she was doing."

"I know..." Savannah said. "...She sacrificed herself for us. While I'm worried about her, I'm more worried about Rose."

"You shouldn't be." Cherri told her, putting her hand on her friend's shoulder. "I know she's strong-willed and has dragon powers and knows how to fight, but look at her. She's so slow. There's no way that she could get very far."

"What are you trying to say, Cherri?" Savannah asked.

"She's probably hiding somewhere..." Cherri said, taking her hand off of her friend's shoulder. "...I'm sure she'll be found close by. Then we can work on saving Angela."

"I hope so, Cherri..." Savannah sighed, looking back down at the table. "...I really hope so..."

At that moment, the door to the room opened, and while Savannah didn't look up, Cherri turned her head to the side to see Joel, Arkadi, Lista and Gilda, who looked somewhat happy, all in their dragon forms and all walking into the room.

"Did you find her?" Cherri asked, standing up.

"Nope." Gilda revealed why she was so happy; crossing her scaly arms and smiling. "We've searched the entire premise of the city."

"She's nowhere to be seen." Joel told her. "She's not here."

Surprised by this, Cherri's eyes widened somewhat and she turned her head to the side as she heard a moan coming from Savannah, who slouched over onto the table, once again burying her face in her hands. Frowning, Cherri looked back to the four dragons. "Well, look again." She ordered fiercely. "There's no way she could have gotten out of the city. You probably missed some place. And get the rest of the team to help you!"

"Cherri..." Joel tried.

"Don't." Cherri barked. "Look again. That's an order!"

While Arkadi and Lista seemed to take this to heart, therefore turning and walking back out of the room, Gilda scowled as she turned and left the room, leaving behind only Joel, who just smiled. "You know, Cherri..." He said, crossing his arms. "...How can you give me an order? You're not in charge."

"You're right." Cherri also crossed her arms. "Savannah is. But Savannah isn't in the right state of mind. Besides, I outrank you."

"You're just Savannah's friend..." Joel's smile slowly started to fade, and he brought his scaly arms to his side. "...That's the only reason."

"At least I'm not a kiss-up to Lono..." Cherri's response quickly wiped off what was left of Joel's grin. Instead, he merely growled as he slowly turned around and started to walk out of the room. As soon as he stepped outside, he turned his head to the side, where he saw Coen leaning against the wall, his scaly arms crossed.

"She's not here." Joel told him. "That punk Cherri doesn't believe that I've checked. Well I did. If anyone wants to find Rose, it's me." As he said this, he held out his clenched fist and uncurled it, staring down at the black Chinese Dragon on his skin. "I need her..."

Back inside the dining room, Cherri sat back down next to Savannah again and put her hand around her shoulder. "Don't worry." She said comfortingly. "We'll find her..." As she said this, Savannah lifted her head back up with a sniffle, tears running down her cheeks.

"I hope so." She said as she leaned to the side against Cherri's side for comfort. "Because if anything happens to her, I don't know what I'll do..."

LINE BREAK

Rose was panting as she struggled to keep up with Zhi Ya and her daughter. Her wings were becoming stiffer and she nearly had to grunt to get them to move, not to mention that that sweat was starting to roll down her forehead. "Come on, Rose..." She told herself as she gave another flap of her wings. "...You need to keep going. You've got to help Angela..."

Meanwhile, Yao Niang was still looking down as she and her mother flew through the air. Finally, as they started to fly above a rundown, yet large building that where she was from, looked like castle.

"Mother, look!" Yao Niang pointed down at the building with one hand as she reached over and tapped her mother's shoulder with the other. "Down there!"

Zhi Ya looked down at where her daughter was pointing, and as she saw the building, a cruel smile appeared on her face. Turning her head to the side, she showed her smile to her daughter. "Well done." She said. "Now let's hurry before she wakes up."

Rose took a deep breath as she flapped her wings again. Reaching up to her face to wipe the sweat off, Rose gave another flap as she stared at the two villains, determined to find out where they were going. However, she gasped as she saw the two of them diving down, heading for the ground. Looking down, Rose watched as the two evil dragons landed right in front of a large building that was slowly rotting, but was designed like a castle.

"Okay, Rose." Rose said to herself. "It's now or never." With a grunt, she then positioned herself in a downward angle as she flapped her wings, slowly starting to fly to the ground.

Meanwhile, down on the ground, Yao Niang stood close by her mother as her smile widened even more. "Well done, my daughter." She said. "I like it. They won't be able to find us here if they choose to come looking for her friend."

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL BREAK

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

Stepping inside the hideout, Zhi Ya allowed her daughter to walk ahead of her as she turned around and closed the door. Smiling, she then turned around and walked up to her daughter's side. "You sure picked the right place to stay." She said. "Come on..." She added as she looked around the room that they were in. "...Let's find a place to perform the ritual..."

LINE BREAK

Outside the hideout, Rose panted as she landed on the ground, staring at the hideout. "This..." Rose started. "...This isn't good."

LINE BREAK

Back inside the hideout, both Zhi Ya and her daughter entered a large room where there were three tables. At the end of the room, there was a chair. "Sit her down in that chair." Zhi Ya pointed at the chair. "I'm going to go look for something to tie her with."

As Zhi Ya turned and started walking out of the room, Yao Niang started to walk over to the chair. Once she reached the chair, she shook the still unconscious Angela off of her back. As Angela hit the floor on her back, Yao Niang turned around a knelt down, grabbing hold of Angela and grunting as she lifted her up, turned her around and sat her down in the chair.

Stepping back to catch her breath, Yao Niang turned around when she heard footsteps and she saw her mother enter, carrying a length of chains. "I found these." She said, tossing them over to her daughter, who caught them easily. "Bind our guest..."

LINE BREAK

At the docks, Rose stood still in her dragon form, waiting impatiently as she stared down at the water until the surface started to bubble. Then, in the blink of an eye, the transparent submarine emerged, the lid opening up and the escalator coming up.

As soon as the escalator reached the tip of the dock, Rose slowly stepped onto the first step and she started to descend into the submarine.

LINE BREAK

"Wakey, wakey..." Angela moaned as she slowly started to open her eyes. "...Have a nice nap?" Even with her vision blurred, Angela could recognize the sound of Yao Niang's voice; however, once her vision cleared, she was shocked to see not the Orchid-colored dragon, but instead a human girl with the long hair. The girl wore a long, sleeveless tunic that went down both sides of her body, all the way to her ankles. Angela could see the side of the girl's legs and the side of her stomach and chest; the only thing that kept the two-sided tunic together was that it not only joined at the shoulders, but also had strips of the same fabric that the garment was made out of around the sides, tied to the other end of the cloth. "Glad to see you're back with us..." Yao Niang said with a smile as she backed up away from her.

With Yao Niang away from her, Angela looked down at herself, finding that her wrists were pressed up against each of the armrests, chains wrapped around them, keeping her wrists in place. She also found that chains were wrapped around her chest and the chair in an X-shape, binding her to the chair. Finally, her ankles were bound together with more chains. Grunting, Angela struggled against the chains.

"Comfortable?" Yao Niang asked.

"Not really..." Angela looked back up and stared at one of her two captors, giving her a small smile filled with sarcasm. "...But at least you were kind enough to ask, right? At least you cared..."

At that moment, Zhi Ya, still in her dragon form, walked back into the room, holding a bowl. "I also found this, my daughter..." She said as she stepped over to the table and set the bowl down. "...This is how we'll make the offering. Take a lock of her hair and her cross..."

"Yes, mother." Yao Niang said as she walked up to the chained girl. Yao Niang quickly reached for her chest and grabbed her cross, pulling it over her head and off, while still leaving her medallion on.

"Hey!" Angela protested.

"Sorry, but you won't be needing this anymore..." Yoa Niang smiled as she held up her hand that was not holding the cross. In a bright light, Yao Niang's claws appeared, and she quickly grabbed hold of some of Angela's hair, making her hiss in pain.

"You're going to be in a lot of pain for a few minutes..." Yao Niang told her calmly. "...But that's okay. It will all be over soon..."

Then, she yanked back, ripping out a fistful of Angela's hair, making her scream in pain as Yao Niang turned her head to the side, smiling as she held up the fistful of hair.

LINE BREAK

With a "ding" sound, the doors of the elevator opened, and a now human Rose slowly stepped into Mermaid City. Slowly turning her head from side to side, Rose's eyes widened as she saw Joel, in his dragon form, walking up to the elevator from the side, Coen at his side.

"Joel!" Rose shouted, slowly turning and starting to walk over to the two dragons.

"Rose!" Even though Joel was staring right at Rose, he did recognize her until she called him. With Coen following him, Joel quickly started to walk over to Rose, both of them stopping as they reached her. "Rose, where were you?" Joel asked. "We were all worried about you! Don't scare us like that!"

"I'm fine." Rose told him. "I followed those two dragons. I know where they're holding Angela."

LINE BREAK

Back in the dining hall, Cherri was still sitting next to Savannah, who had managed to calm down and was now just staring at the wall as she inhaled deeply. Suddenly, the door opened, Joel and Coen walking inside in their dragon forms, followed by Rose, who slowly walked inside in her human form.

"I thought I told you to-" Cherri said as she started to get up, but she stopped when she saw Rose, her eyes widening. "Rose..."

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL BREAK

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

Now, Rose sat alone on one end of the table, while the dragon forms of Savannah, Cherri, Joel, Coen, Gilda, Arkadi, Lista, Maverick and Lexy all sat on the other end. "You can lead us to where they're holding Angela?" Savannah asked.

Rose nodded, not saying a word. "Okay." Savannah then got up from her place on the bench. "Rose, come with me. Lexy..." She then turned her head to the side. "...I need you." Then, she looked down at Cherri. "Cherri, I want you to stay here and keep an eye on the rest of the team."

Cherri nodded as Rose slowly got up from her place on the bench and slowly started to walk over to Savannah. Once she reached Savannah's side, Rose could see Lexy frowning as she walked over to them.

"What do you need?" She asked as she stopped in front of them.

"You know." Savannah replied, putting it simply.

LINE BREAK

Lexy's room was completely spotless, Rose found as she followed Savannah into her room, Lexy leading the way. Unlike Angela's room that had very little in it, Lexy's room was filled with shelves that lined the walls; filled with books. However, despite the large amount, they were all perfectly aligned and neat.

"I'm sorry that we have to do this..." Rose slowly turned her head to the side and glanced up as she heard Savannah speaking to Lexy. "...But they could be expecting a rescue. Some weapons would be a nice advantage for us."

Lexy nodded slowly as she started to walk over to her bed, which was in the middle of the room. As she reached the side of her bed, she grabbed her pillow and lifted it up, revealing what looked like a Kleenex box. Setting the pillow back down, Lexy grabbed the box with once clawed hand and then turned around, looking at Rose and Savannah.

"Take one pair each..." She told them.

Savannah started to walk over to Lexy, and Rose slowly started to follow her. Savannah reached Lexy quickly and she took out two pairs of blue medical gloves with extra long finger area and steal cones at the tips.

"Here." Savannah said, turning around just in time for Rose to catch up with her. "Put these on..." She ordered as she handed Rose two of the gloves.

"Okay..." Rose said with a look of confusion on her face as she slowly reached out and grabbed the gloves. Holding the gloves, she watched as Savannah smiled, slipping on one of the gloves before slipping on the other. As soon as they were on, Savannah's smile faded as she saw that Rose hadn't put them on.

"Why do I need these?" Rose asked.

"Just go with it..." Savannah said, almost in a pleading tone.

Sighing, Rose finally complied with the request and slid on one of the gloves, only to find that her fingers were shorter than the space made for them. "That's when you go into your dragon form." Savannah pointed out when she noticed Rose's annoyed look.

"Right..." Rose replied as she slowly slipped on the other one.

Her smile returning, Savannah turned around to face Lexy. "Let's see what you've got." she said.

Nodding, Lexy pushed at the side of her bed, grunting as she managed to push off the mattress, which fell onto the floor. "You're going to help me get that back on..." Lexy told Savannah, but Savannah, as well as Rose, were not listening to her. Instead, they looked down at the bed, where a line of weapons were laid out.

"You sleep under all of these...?" Rose's eyes were wide as she stared.

There were about ten weapons on the bed; the first one was a sharp sword, a Kama, a sling, a Tepoztopilli, a Mace, a sheathed KA-BAR, a pair of Hook swords, a Sai dagger and finally, a SIG Sauer P239.

"You may each take one." Lexy told them.

As Rose scanned the entire bed, Savannah's eyes widened as she reached down and took the SIG. "I didn't know you carried this..." She said with a shocked tone as she turned around to face her teammate.

"This isn't an ordinary gun." Lexy said as she took the gun from her. "This has been modified to fire anything. Bullets, rocks, marbles, a length of rope. The barrel..." She said as she pointed at the hole at the end of barrel. "...Will actually adjust so that it can fire what you put in it."

"That's really cool..." Savannah pointed out as she reached out and took the weapon back. "...I think I'll take this one with me."

"Just be sure to bring it back." Lexy replied. "And whatever you do, don't take those gloves off."

"I won't." Savannah promised as she turned around to face Rose, who was still looking down at the weapons. "Have you chosen one yet?" Savannah asked.

"Does it look like it?" Lexy mumbled as she stepped to Savannah's side.

"I don't mean to be rude or anything, Rose..." Savannah said. "...But unfortunately, Angela's life is in danger. We need to hurry. We might already be too late."

Hearing this, Rose turned her head to the side to stare at the two other dragons. "I know, I know..." She said, her filled with confusion and frustration. "...I just...can't decide. I wish I had my staff." This last sentence came out as more of a mumble as she slowly turned her attention back to the bed. After a few more seconds, Rose slowly reached out and wrapped her fingers slowly around the handle of the Tepoztopilli.

LINE BREAK

Stepping out of Lexy's room slowly so that Rose could keep up with her, Savannah sighed as she turned her head to the side and looked down. "Are you ready for this?" She asked. "If you want, you can ride on my back so you don't have to fly..."

"That would be best..." Rose replied, turning her head to the side slowly and looking up.

"Then I want you to do something for me..." Savannah said, holding the SIG to the side for Rose to take. "...Lexy will freak if I put this in my pocket, but you know just as well as I do that when we storm their base, I can't have this thing out in the open..."

"So take the risk of freaking her out..." Rose suggested.

"I made her a promise, though." Savannah said. "You didn't..."

There was a brief moment when neither of the two woman moved or said anything. Then, Rose sighed as she slowly extended her arm out, taking the SIG. Sighing again, she slowly lowered it into her pocket. Then, she slowly lifted her hand and arm up and slowly reached over to her weapon, taking it in both hands. Slowly turning her head to the side, she said: "Let's go."

LINE BREAK

"How much farther, Rose?" Flying in the air, Savannah had Rose on her back. "Are we almost there?" As Savannah asked this question, Rose was peering over her shoulder, staring down at the ground.

"We're not quite there yet." Rose told her. "I don't think it's too much further."

"You don't think?"

"I know we're going in the right direction." Rose told her. "And I'll know the place when I see it. I think we're getting-" However, at that moment, Rose stopped as she saw the hideout in the distance. "There it is!" Rose shouted.

"Where?" Savannah asked, looking out in the distance, her eyes widening as she saw the hideout. "Is that it?"

"That's it." Rose confirmed.

"Alright." Savannah nodded, her eyes narrowing. "Hold on tight. We're going in." Then, she dived down.

LINE BREAK

Moments later, both women were right in front of the doors to the hideout. "This place is huge." Savannah said as she looked at the entire building. "They could be holding her anywhere in here."

"I know..." Rose replied. "...That's why I think we should split up once we get inside."

"Sounds like a good plan..." Savannah smiled as she turned her head to the side. "...Come on, Rose. Let's go save Angela."

Nodding once, Rose smiled as her body became consumed by a bright light, and once the light faded, Rose was standing in her dragon form. "Open the door..." She said.

LINE BREAK

As the door opened, Savannah stepped into the hideout, followed by Rose, who slowly walked over to her left side. The two found themselves in a long hall. At the end of the hall, there was the start of two more halls, right across from one another.

"Okay..." Savannah whispered to Rose, turning her head to the side. "...We split up at the end of this hall. I'll go down that one." She pointed to the hall on her side. "You go down that one." She then used her other arm to point to the hall on Rose's side.

"Got it." Rose said as she slowly started to walk down the hall. Taking a deep breath, Savannah started to follow her.

Once the two managed to reach the separate halls, Savannah turned around to see that Rose was already starting to slowly walk into the hall. "Hey, Rose." She called, making Rose stop and slowly turn around.

"Yeah?"

"Good luck." Savannah smiled. "Let's hope we find her...and it's not too late."

LINE BREAK

Back in the large dining room, Angela sat in her chains, watching with awe as Zhi Ya stood by her bowl that was still on the table. Yao Niang was leaning against the wall, still in her human form, with her arms crossed. "Is the potion ready yet, mother?" She asked.

"Almost." Zhi Ya replied, turning her head to the side. "I just have to recite the-" However, Zhi Ya stopped abruptly and whirled around to face the entrance to the room as she heard the sound of footsteps. "Someone's coming..."

Hearing this, Yao Niang's eyes widened and she stepped away from the wall and walked up to her mother's side. "Stay here..." Zhi Ya told her daughter. "...I'll take care of this. You stay here and keep an eye on the potion.

"Yes, mother." Yoa Niang said as Zhi Ya started to flap her wings, taking off into the air and flying out of the room.

LINE BREAK

Outside in the hall, Savannah was nearing the entrance to the dining hall where Angela was being kept prisoner. Taking another step, Savannah held her breath, preparing for whatever was to come. Exhaling, Savannah brought her leg forward, but she froze when she heard the sound of flapping wings.

The next thing she knew, the bright ube-colored dragon flew into the hall and landed right in front of her, just a couple feet away, staring right at her. "You..." She growled.

Her eyes wide, Savannah brought her clawed hand down to her side where her pocket who would be, only to gasp as she remembered that she was not only in dragon form, but had given her weapon to Rose. Her eyes wide, Savannah returned her attention back to Zhi Ya, only to gasp as she saw her flying right toward her.

Savannah grunted as Zhi Ya slammed into her, making her fall over onto her back with another grunt. Before Savannah could recover, Zhi Ya shot her tail down and wrapped it around Savannah's neck, trapping her.

"How did you find us?" Zhi Ya demanded. "Is there anyone else with you?!"

"No..." Savannah answered bravely. "...Just me..."

Zhi Ya just stared down at Savannah for a few seconds before her lips curled into a sneer. Quickly, she lifted her tail up, lifting Savannah's head up off the ground, only to slam it back down on the hard floor, making Savannah gasp with pain.

"You're lying!" Zhi Ya growled. "Tell me the truth or I'll slam your head so hard that your brains will spill out! Is there anyone with you?!"

Savannah just stared back, her eyes revealing the pain that she was in, but when she gave her answer, it was still brave: "It's...just me..."

Zhi Ya stared down at her captive for a few more seconds before she turned her head to the side, shouting: "Daughter! Come out here!"

A few seconds later, Yao Niang, still in her human form, walked out of the dining hall and started to walk over to her mother. "Yes, mother?"

"I want you to search around the place." Zhi Ya ordered. "I think she has an accomplice. Find the accomplice and bring her back alive."

"Yes, mother..." As Savannah heard Yao Niang say this, her eyes widened in fear, the pain now gone. "No! ROSE!" She shouted at the top of her lungs, making the now grinning Zhi Ya look back down on her.

LINE BREAK

Rose, still in her dragon form and clutching her Tepoztopilli, was slowly walking toward a closed door in the hall that she was in, only to freeze when she heard a shout: "ROSE!"

Although surprised at first, Rose slowly turned around. "SAVANNAH?" She called back. "IS THAT YOU?"

"ROSE!" The call replied, confirming to Rose that it was in fact Savannah. "ROSE, RUN! GET THE HECK OUT OF HERE! ROSE, HIDE! DO WHATEVER YOU HAVE T-!" However, at that moment, Savannah's call was cut off abruptly.

This left Rose alone in the hall, her eyes widening with fear.

LINE BREAK

Zhi Ya unwrapped her tail from around the now unconscious Savannah's neck. The evil dragon then turned around to face her daughter. "You heard me." She said sternly. "You know what to do..."

Smiling, Yao Niang transformed into her Orchid-colored dragon form in a bright light. Once her transformation was complete, the still grinning dragon started to flap her wings, flying up to the ceiling.

As her mother stared up at her, Yao Yiang flapped her wings some more, flying down the hall with a smile on her face.

BLACKOUT; END EPISODE

**A/N: Please review. **


End file.
